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HISTORY 



TOWN or MARLBOROUGH, 



MIDDLESEX COUNTY, MASSACHUSEHS, 



FIRST SETTLEMENT IN 1657 TO 1861; 



BRIEF SKETCH OF THE TOWN OF NORTHBOROUGH, 



GENEALOGY 

OF THE FAMILIES IN MARLBOROUGH TO 1800, 



AND AX ACCOUNT OF THE 



CELEBRATION OF THE TWO HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY OF 
THE INCORPORATION OF THE TOWN. 



BY CHARLES HUDSON, 

A NATIVE OV THE TOWN. 

BOSTON: 

PRESS OF T. R. MARVIN & SON, 42 CONGRESS STREET. 
' 1862. 



€a iht 

DESCENDANTS OF THE FIRST SETTLERS OF MARLBOROUGH, 



WHEEEVER SITUATED, 



AND TO THE 



PRESENT INHABITANTS OF THE TOWN, 



WHEREVER BORN, 



THE TOLLOWIXO PAGES ARE RESPECTFULI-Y INSCRIBEH 



BY THE AUTHOR. 



INTRODUCTORY NOTE. 



It may be expected, and it is certainly very proper, that the 
Publishing Committee should give some account of the circum- 
stances which led to the preparation and publication of this 
volume. We are the more ready to do so, because it seems to 
us that the course of the Town of Marlborough, in relation to 
it, might well be imitated by other Towns whose annals are 
worthy of being written. 

In June, 1860, occurred the Two Hundredth Anniversary 
of the Incorporation of the Town. It was decided to com- 
memorate it. In extending an invitation to Hon. Charles 
Hudson to deliver the Address, they selected a distinguished 
native of the town, who cherished a strong filial regard for 
it, and whose taste led him into historical researches. In his 
faithful preparation for the occasion, he went very thoroughly 
into the early history of the town, and prepared an amount 
of matter far beyond what could be used on such an occa- 
sion. After the Celebration, this was placed at the disposal 
of the Committee of Arrangements, who were authorized by 
the town to publish it. Though thorough and accurate, as 
far as it went, yet, published as then prepared, it would be 
only a fragment. It seemed to the Committee exceedingly 
desirable, that the author should be induced to go on and 
make a complete history of the town. They applied to 
Mr. Hudson, to ascertain if he would undertake the work, 
and on what terms. They received from him a proposition, 
which they laid before the town, with the recommendation 



VI 

that it be accepted. The town with great unanimity author- 
ized the Committee to engage him to do the work, and to 
obtain an engraved Hkeness of the author, at the town's 
expense, to face the title-page. The result is the volume 
which is now presented to the public. 

We hoped to include in the volume, in addition to the 
History and the Genealogies of Marlborough, succinct sketches 
of the other Borough towns subsequent to their incorporation, 
which those towns were invited to furnish. This would have 
given us a complete history of all the territory originally in- 
cluded in Marlborough. This work has been well done for 
Northborough, by Rev. Joseph Allen, D. D., but Westborough 
and Southborough failed to give us the sketches desired. 

The Publishing Committee have great satisfaction in laying 
before their fellow-citizens the result of Mr. Hudson's labors, 
feeling confident that it will fully meet all reasonable expecta- 
tions. Both the Historical and Genealogical portions are con- 
siderably more full and extended than was anticipated. It is 
believed they will be found as accurate, and free from errors, 
as we could reasonably expect. None but those who have per- 
formed similar tasks, can appreciate the amount of labor and 
pains-taking which the preparation of the History has involved. 
We feel that the pecuniary compensation the author receives 
is entirely inadequate ; and trust that he will have found his 
most satisfactory remuneration in the pleasure the work has 
afforded him, as well as in the gratification of having conferred 
an important benefit on his native town, and permanently 
connected his name with its annals. 

HORATIO ALGER, 
HOLLIS LORING, 
0. W. ALBEE, 

Publishing Committee. 
Marlborough, December 16, 1861. 



PREFACE. 



In preparing the following pages, 1 have labored 
under many disadvantages. The early Records of 
Marlborough are very meagre, so far as historical mat- 
ters are concerned — the most of the space being occu* 
pied by the location and description of grants of land. 
Besides, one volume of their Ilecords has been lost ; so 
that we have no connected record of town officers, or of 
the proceedings of the town, from 1665 to 1739. We 
have been enabled to supply some of the defects from 
the Records of the Proprietors of the Town, and from 
the Book kept by the Proprietors of the Indian Plant- 
ation. But as these Records relate principally to their 
lands, they do not give us full information relative to 
town affairs. Nor have we had any connected Church 
Records, to supply the deficiency. Many facts have 
been collected from the Colony Records, and from the 
Massachusetts Archives, a valuable collection of papers 
of almost every kind, and on almost every subject, in 
the office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. I 
have not learned that there are any collections of old 
papers, containing historical information, in the pos- 
session of any of the old families of Marlborough. 
Doubtless there are such papers, containing important 
information, but I have been unable to find them. 



Yin 



From the widely scattered materials thus collected, I 
have endeavored to present an impartial Historical 
Sketch of the Town. I have in several cases intro- 
duced matter of a general character, which applies to 
Marlborough only in common with most other towns. 
But such digressions seemed to me important, as illus- 
trating the manners and customs of the people, and the 
spirit of the age — without a knowledge of which many 
portions of our early history would be destitute of in- 
terest, and in some cases would be likely to mislead us. 
How far I have succeeded in presenting an interesting 
and instructive narrative, I leave others to judge. I 
could have made it more flattering ; but I chose to 
appear in the character of a historian^ rather than in 
that of a eulogist. 

I gladly embrace this opportunity to express my 
acknowledgments to all those who have kindly aided 
me, by giving information, or supplying me with facts. 
My thanks are due to John Phelps, Esq., Town Clerk 
of Marlborough, for the free use of the Records in 
his custody ; to Rev. Horatio Alger, for the use of 
his valuable copy of the Births, Deaths and Marriages, 
collected and arranged with great care and accuracy — 
and also, for the use of his manuscript Historical Dis- 
courses ; to Mrs. Mary Williams, for her valuable 
Record of Births, Deaths and Publishments, extending 
over nearly a century ; to Mr. Stephen Rice, for his 
Record of Deaths for thirty years ; to Mrs. Susanna 
Bigelow, for the use of a valuable Record of several 
families. I am also indebted to Stephen Morse, Esq., 
Capt. Jedediah Wood, Col. William H. Wood, Hon. 
O. W. Albee, Mr. Cyrus Felton, and several other 



IX 

individuals of Marlborough, for the aid they have 
kindly rendered me. Nor should I omit the mention 
of the History of Northborough, by Rev. Dr. Allen, 
which aided me as a matter of reference ; and it is but 
justice to say, that his statements have always been 
found to harmonize with the original records. 

I am also happy to acknowledge the kindness of the 
Librarian of Harvard College, of the State Library, of 
the Boston Athenccum, of the American Antiquarian 
Society, of the New England Historic-Genealogical 
Society, and of the Massachusetts Historical Society, 
for the free use of their respective Libraries. The Sec- 
retary of the Commonwealth is also entitled to my grat- 
itude, for the free access granted me to the valuable 
papers in his office, from which I have obtained much 
information. Nor should I neglect to acknowledge the 
kindness of the Clerk of the Court, the Register of Pro- 
bate, and the Register of Deeds of the County of Mid- 
dlesex, for facilities granted in examining the records 
and papers in their respective offices. 

CHARLES HUDSON. 
Lexington, November 28, 186L 



CONTENTS. 



CHAPTER I. 

GRANT AND SETTLEMENT OF THE TOWNSHIP. 

Introductory Remarks, page 13. .Importance of Town Meetings, 14. .Char- 
acter and value of Town Histories, 16. .Rise of tlie Puritans, 16. .Per- 
secutions under Mary and Elizabeth, li>.. Marked traits of the Puritan 
character, 21. .Religious liberty their great idea, 22. .The first settlers 
of Massachusetts and Virginia, 24. .Their desire to build up a religious 
commonwealth, 24.. Love of land, 25.. Hooker settled Hartford, 25.. 
Grant and incorporation of Sudbury, 2G. .Extension of its boundaries, 
20. .Petition for Marlborough, 2(i..The township granted, 27.. List of 
grantees, 27. .Ockoocangansett an earlier grant, 28. .Situation of the 
Planting Field, 29. .Situation of the English Plantation,. 29. .Plan of it 
by Andrews, 29.. Its meetcs and bounds, 29..Assabet river, its name, 
29. .Meadows highly esteemed, 30. .Why free from wood, 30. .Diagram 
of town and Indian Plantation, 31 . .First meeting called, 31. .Committee 
chosen, 32. .Addition to the proprietors, 32. .Indian name of the English 
Plantation, 32. .Tax upon house lots, 32. . Alcocke's farm, 33. .A portion 
given up to Marlborough, 33. .Additional tracts set to Marlborough, 34 
. .Marlborough incorporated, 34. .Old and new style, 34. .Mr. Chauncy 
repaid, 35. .Name of Chauncy pond, 35. .A tax laid to support the min- 
ister, 36. .House lots assigned, 37. .Meadows assigned, 37. .Cow Com- 
mons designated, 38. .Commons finally divided, 38. .Frame for the min- 
ister's house, 39. .House and lot given to Rev. Mr. Brimsmead, 39. . 
Meeting house erected, 40. .Its situation and deed of the land, 40.. 
Common subsequently enlarged, 41 . .First town officers, 41. .Roads laid 
out, 41. .Hogs to be yoked and rung, 42. .Location of first settlers, 43 
..Discontent and a Court's committee sent out, 45. .Controversy in 
relation to records, 46. .Report of a committee on the subject, 47.. 
Report assailed, 48.. Another committee appointed, 48.. Their report 
final, 48. .A petition for a church, and opposition made, 49. .A council 
called, their report, 50.. Rev. Mr. Brimsmead settled, and a church 
gathered, 50. .His ministry and character, 50. .He kept a Latin journal, 
51 . .Influence of the clergy, 51. 



Xll 



CHAPTER II. 

THE INDIAN PLANTATION. 

The Indians submitted to the Colony, page 53. .Marlborough Indians a 
branch of the Wamesit tribe, 53. .The Indian grant, 54. .Their Planting 
Field, 55. .Eliot preaches to Indians and translates the Bible into their 
language, 56. .Indian worship, 56. .Praying Indian towns, 57. .Descrip- 
tion of Ockoocangansett, 57. .Proposed school, 59. .Deed to Gookin, 60 
. .Burial place and Indian relics, 61 . .Indians disappear by the order of 
Providence, 62. .Should be treated kindly, 62 . . Massachusetts's policy 
towards them just and benevolent, 63. 



CHAPTER III. 

KING PHILIP'S WAR. 

The tribes submit to the Colony, page 65. .Philip plots the extermination of 
the English, 66. .His character, 67. .Marlborough prepares for the con- 
flict, 67. .Immediate cause of the war, 68. .Philip attacks Swanzey, 69 
. .Philip defeated and fled to the Nipmucks, 69. .Indians attack Hutch- 
inson and Wheeler, sent to treat with them, 69. .Hutchinson buried at 
Marlborough, 69. .Philip attacks Hadley, Deerfield and Northfield, 70. . 
Mosely chastises the Indians, 70.. The Narragansets join Philip, 70.. 
They are defeated in their fortress, 70. .Lancaster attacked and Mrs. 
Rolandson taken captive, 71. .Depredation in Marlborough, 72..Med- 
field burnt, 72..Groton attacked, 72. .Marlborough and Brookfieid 
threatened, 73. .Marlborough attacked and their meeting house burnt, 
73.. Indians surprised by Lieut. Jacobs, 74. .Sudbury burnt, 75.. Sud- 
bury fight, 75.. Date of the battle, 75.. Death of Captains Wadsworth 
and Erocklebank, 77. .Bridgewater and Plymouth partially destroyed, 78 
..Indians chastised at Deerfield and Hadley, 78. .Philip seeks aid of 
the Mohawks, 78.. Flees to Mount Hope, 78..Capt. Church goes in 
pursuit of him, 78. .Philip narrowly escapes, 78. .Death of Philip, 79. . 
His character, 79. .Destructive character of the war, 80.. Conduct of 
the Marlborough Indians, 81. .Carried away by Capt. Mosely, 81. .Evils 
of war over-ruled for good, 83. 

CHAPTER IV. 

RE-SETTLEMENT OF MARLBOROUGH — INDIAN WARS, &c. 

The inhabitants return, page 87.. Rebuild their meeting house, 87.. Erect 
another, 88. .Deed from the Indians, 89. .Sundry persons pray that the 
Indian Plantation may be granted to them, 92 . . Certain citizens of Marl- 



XIU 

borough pray thut they may purchase tlie Plantation, 93.. Certain In- 
dians remonstrate, 93. .John Brigham and others obtain a deed, 94. .The 
General Court declare the deed void, 94. .The proprietors layout the 
land, 95.. Desire a confirmation of the title, 9.5.. The purchase of 
doubtful morality, 96. .Great desire for land, 97. .Settlers at Chauncy 
encouraged relative to a new parish, 98. .Schools established, 99. .Devo- 
tion to civil liberty, 99. .Elizabeth Howe captured, 100.. Several fam- 
ilies added to the settlement, 100. .Death of Mr. Brimsmead, 101. .Call 
of Mr. Emerson and opposition thereto, 101.. A council called, 102.. 
Mr. Breck settled, 103. .Queen Anne's war, 104. .Capt. Howe's Expedi- 
tion to relieve Lancaster, 105.. Capture of the Rice children, 105.. 
Capture of John Bigelow, 106.. Miss Goodnow killed by the Indians, 
106. .Mrs. Fay defends the garrison, 107. .Wilder and Howe taken, 107 
. .Capt. Howe pursues the enemy, 107. .Garrisons in Marlborough, 109 
..Their location, 110.. Seating the meeting house, 112. .Additional 
territory added to Marlborough, 113.. A petition for the extension of 
Marlborough, 113. .Westborough set off from Marlborough, 114. .Orig- 
inal settlers of Westborough, 114. .Westborough divided, 11 5.. The 
'Farm' and Indian Plantation annexed to Marlborough, 116.. South- 
borough set off from Marlborough, 116. .Marlborough proud of her 
daughters, 116. .Death and character of Rev. Mr. Breck, 117. 



CHAPTER V . 

ECCLESIASTICAL MATTERS, &c. 

Several gentlemen invited to become their minister, and declined, page 122 
..Mr. Kent settled, 122.. Charged with heresy, 122.. A council called, 
123.. He leaves the place, 123.. His subsequent history and character, 
124. .Difficulty in agreeing upon a successor, 126. .Fasts appointed, 126 
. .Young men's association, 127. .Rev. Mr. Smith settled, 128. .Petition 
to setoff the Indian Plantation as a town, 128. .The east part desire to be 
made a town, 129. .Marlborough remonstrates, and the petitioners are 
defeated, 130.. Great drought, 130.. Repairs of the meeting house, 131 
. .Ecclesiastical matters an important part of Town History, 132. 



CHAPTER VI. 

THE FRENCH AXD INDIAN WARS. 

Marlborough furnished a large number of men, page 134. .Soldiers in 1722 
-24, 134. .Campaign in 1741, 134.. Capture of Louisburg, 135. .Capt. 
Joseph Howe at No. 4, 135. .The French wars a great drain upon the 
blood and treasures of the Colonies, 1-35. .Marlborough Companies in 
1757, 136.. Soldiers in 1745, '46 and '48, 139. .Soldiers in 1754, '55 
and '56, 139.. Fall of Fort William Henry, 139. .Capt. Howe's Com- 



XIV 

pany, 140.. Lieut. Maynards Company, 140. .Soldiers in 17.")8 and '59, 
141.. Men furnished in 1760 and '()2, 141.. The importance and influ- 
ence of the French wars, 142. 

CHAPTER VII. 

THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

The Colonies had been true to the mother country, page 144. .The Stamp 
Act, 144. .Measures of defense, 145. .Non-consumption and non-im- 
portation, 145.. The voice of Marlborough, 146 . .Instructions to their 
Representative, 1 48 .. Patriotic resolutions, 150. .Instructions to their 
Representative, 152.. Taxes to be paid to the Provincial treasurer, 152 
..Arms and ammunition provided, 152.. The causes of the war, 1.53.. 
Not taxation alone, 154.. The tories, 155.. Henry Barnes, 156.. Brown 
and De Bunicre sent to Worcester, 157. .They visit Marlborough, 158 
..Their reception there, 159.. Rev. Mr. Smith unpopular, 160.. Took a 
dismission, 161. .Outrage committed at his house, 161. .Trifles show the 
manners and customs of the people, 162. .Warning out of town, 163. . 
Narrowing of roads, 164. .Remarkable events, 164. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

Spectacle of the rising of the people, page 165. .Battle of the minute-men, 
167. .Lexington Monument, 167. .Marlborough Companies which march 
to Cambridge, 168. .Troops furnished in the Revolution, 170. .Manufac- 
ture of saltpetre, 175. .Marlborough will sustain a Declaration of Inde- 
pendence with fortunes and life, 175. .Bounties offered for enlistments, 
175. .Will supply the families of soldiers, 175. .Vote on the Confedera- 
tion, 175.. Vote on the adoption of the first State constitution, 176.. 
Soldiers do a turn of duty, 176. .Bounty to soldiers, 177. .Convention at 
Concord to regulate prices, 178.. State constitution adopted, 179.. 
Offered a bounty of neat stock for enlistment, 180.. Army short of 
powder, &c., 180. .Depreciation of the currency, 181. .Massachusetts 
compared with other States, 185. .Close of the war, 186. .Great sickness 
in 1775, 186. .Cold winter, 186. .Dark day, 187. 

CHAPTER IX. 

THE STATE OF THINGS AFTER THE REVOLUTION. 

Pecuniary embarrassment, page 188.. Shay's rebellion, 190 .. Resolutions 
and instructions to Representatives, 191.. Wise statesmanship, 193.. 
Return of the tories agitated, 194. .Further instructions to Representa- 



XV 

tives, l!>o. .Death of Washington, 198. .Difficulty in settling a minister, 
199.. Mr. Packard settled, 200.. His labors and sentiments, 202 .. Mr. 
Packard asks a dismission, 203.. New meeting houses erected, 205. . 
The west parish incorporated, 207. .Mr. Packard settles with them, 208 
. .Is dismissed and moves to Lancaster 208. .Mr. Bucklin settled, 208. . 
Succession of ministers, 208. .Methodist Society, 209. .Universalist 
Society, 209.. Baptist Society, 209.. Roman Catholic Society, 209.. 
Now meeting house at Feltonville, 209. 

CHAPTER X. 

EDUCATIOX. 

Our fathers' view of education, page 210. .Law requiring schools, 211.. 
First schools in Marlborough, 211.. School house built, 211 . .Schools 
kept in difturont parts of the town, 212. .Schools apportioned to different 
districts, 213.. The Brigham bequest, 214.. Plan of supporting and 
distributing the schools in 1790, 215. .Schools remodeled in 1803, 217. . 
New district created in 1812, 218. .District south of the pond, 218.. 
State School Fund and Board of Education, 219. .Appropriations for 
schools at different periods, 220. .Academy endowed, 221. .Influence of 
academies upon common schools, 222. .Endowment of the academy 
turned to the best account, 223. .Enlightened policy of Deacon Phelps, 
223. .The High school house, 224. 



C H A P T E R XI. 

MISCELLANEOUS HISTORY. 

Situation and extent, page 225. .Topography, 225. .Town well wooded, 227 
..Barberry-bush, 228.. Soil and productions, 228 .. Orchards, 228.. 
Streams, 230.. Ponds, 2.30.. Mills, 2:31.. Health and longevity, 231.. 
The town incorporated, 235. .Origin of the name, 235. .Line of travel 
through Marlborough, 235. .Railroad accommodation, 23G. .Cemeteries, 
2.30. .Town mark, 239. .Freemen admitted, 2^39. .Freemen's oath, 240. . 
Manner of voting, 241. .Tythingmen and stocks, 241.. Offenses pun- 
ished by stocks, 242. .Constables, 243. .Severity of punishments, 244. . 
Simplicity in dress, 245. 



CHAPTER X 1 1 . 

STATISTICAL HISTORY. 

Population of Marlborough in each decade, from its incorporation to the 
present day, page 247. .Valuation at different periods, 253. .Polls in 1770, 
2.54. .Tax paid by Marlborough from 1774 to 1797, 257, .Tax-payers in 



XVI 

1800, 258. .Polls and valuation every ten years, from 1771 to 1860, 260 
..Census of manufactures, 1837, 261.. Census of Productions, 1845, 
261.. Census of productions, 1855, 262.. Shoe manufactures, 263.. 
Effects of manufactures, 264.. Growth of Marlborough, 264.. Rapid 
growth of Feltonville, 265.. Shoe business in Feltonville, 267. .News- 
paper, and fire department, 268. .Mutual Fire Insurance Company, 268 
..Savings bank, 268.. Bequest of Zachariah Maynard, 269 .. Patriotic 
spirit of Marlborough in 1861, 270. .Rolls of the Band and Companies 
which have entered the service of the United States, 272. 



CHAPTER XIII. 

OFFICIAL HISTORY. 

Personal history important, page 278.. List of Selectmen, 279.. List of 
Town Clerks, 281 . .List of Town Treasurers, 282. .List of Assessors, 
282.. List of Representatives, 283. .Senators, 284 .. Delegates to the 
Provincial Congresses, 284 ., Delegates to Constitutional Conventions, 
284. .Committees of correspondence, 285. .Deacons of the First church, 
285.. Deacons of the West church, 286. .Deacons of the Universalist 
church, 286. .List of Justices of the Peace, 286. .Votes for Governor, 
287. .Political parties, 288. .List of Governors, 290. .List of graduates 
from different colleges, 290. 



SKETCH OF NORTHBOROUGH. 

Northborough incorporated, page 293.. Its area, 293.. Its topography and 
streams, 293 .. Manufactures, 295. .Settlement and population, 296.. 
Churches and ministers, 298. .Schools, lyceums, &c., 300. 



GENEALOGICAL SKETCH OF FAMILIES. 

Introduction, page 303. .Genealogy of families, 308. 



THE CELEBRATION. 

Proceedings at the celebration of the two hundredth anniversary of the 
incorporation of the town, page 491. 



HISTORY OF MARLBOROUGH. 



CHAPTER I. 

GRANT AND SETTLEIMENT OF THE TOWNSHIP. 

Introductory Remarks — Character of the Puritans — Grant of Sudbury, and 
the Extension of its Boundaries — Grant of Marlborough — Indian Plant- 
ation — Organization of the Town — Division of Land — Alcock Farm — 
Building of Minister's House, and Mceting-House — Adoption of Municipal 
Regulations — Location of the Early Families — A Controversy in relation 
to their Records — Committees sent out — Petition for a Church — Opposi- 
tion made — A Council called — Rev. Mr. Brimsmead settled, and a Church 
formed — Character and Death of Mr. Brimsmead. 

History may be divided into general and local ; the former 
treating of public events, and covering a large extent of terri- 
tory, as a State or Nation ; the latter treating more minutely 
of events less publicly known, and confined to a less section 
of territory, as a City or Town. General history has more 
charms for the public at large, while local history is perhaps 
of more interest to the residents of the place, and to those 
whose families are connected with the events narrated. The 
great object of Town Histories is, to gather up the fragments 
which would escape the observation of the general historian, 
to preserve fugitive papers which would otherwise perish, and 
glean from the fading memories of the aged citizens, facts 
and traditions which would soon be lost forever. Such a 
collecting of scattered materials, such a gathering up of minute 
facts and apparently trifling incidents, is all-important, as it 
saves the general historian a vast amount of labor, and furnishes 
him with the elements of information on almost every sub- 
ject of public interest. 

Besides, local histories exhibit the acts and doings of the 
primary assemblies, and thus make known to us the motives 



14 

and springs of action in the human heart. As the character of 
an individual can be best learned by observing his private 
walks and noting his daily conduct, so the genius and spirit, the 
wishes and the wants of a people, are best learned by the tran- 
sactions of small bodies of men in their primary meetings. 
The history which reveals to us the feelings and actions of 
Towns, furnishes us with more reliable information than can 
be drawn from the history of a State. A Town Meeting is a 
surer exponent of the will of the people, than a Legislative 
Assembly, whether State or National. The nearer you come 
to the fountain of power, the people, the more clearly you 
perceive public sentiment, and learn the popular will. In a 
free country like ours, when the great heart of the people is 
moved, the primary assemblies exhibit the first throb, and will 
control the action of the State and National Legislatures. 
All reforms must begin with the people themselves, and. by 
knowing what our people do in their Towns, we can judge 
with almost unerring certainty what must be done in the 
State. 

The American Revolution was inaugurated in Town Meet- 
ings ; and the history of that great political movement may be 
seen in the Resolutions passed, and Acts done in those little 
assemblies. It was there that the great question was debated, 
the first steps taken, the solemn pledge given. And in the 
present great movement in support of our matchless Constitu- 
tion — a movement which shows that the spirit of liberty was 
not buried in the graves of our fathers — where do we see the 
flame of patriotism burning brightest ? Not in our legislative 
halls, but on the hearth-stones of our families, where the sacred 
warmth prompts the tender wife to give up her beloved hus- 
band, the fond mother her darling son, the affectionate sister 
her dear brother, or the blooming maiden the object of her 
highest regard, to defend our country and preserve its glorious 
institutions. Next to the family, the primary gatherings of the 
people exhibit the purest fire of patriotism to light up the hopes 
of the nation. 

Towns are little democracies, where the first lessons of 
political equality are learned. The accountability of rulers 
to the ruled, the potency of public sentiment, and the great 
principle that the few must submit to the will of the many, are 



15 

first learned in the administration of town affairs. Nor is there 
a better school in which to rear up legislators and statesmen, 
than these little communities afford. Town Constables fre- 
quently grow to County Sheriffs ; Moderators of Town Meet- 
ings become Speakers of Deliberative Assemblies; Town 
Clerks, Secretaries of States; and Selectmen, Senators. If 
we were to select the men who have filled high stations in 
the State, with honor to themselves and profit to the com- 
munity, we should find that their first development of talent, 
and their first lessons in business of a public nature, arose 
from common school discipline, and the management of 
municipal affairs. What history, then, can be more instruc- 
tive, than that of those small municipalities, which are the 
fountain of all power, and the primary school of political 
knowledge ? 

A thousand little incidents connected with a Town History, 
or facts found in private papers, may cast light upon important 
questions, A Deed or a Will, a Warrant for a Town Meeting, 
or a Municipal Regulation apparently insignificant, may fix 
a date, determine the motive of a transaction, or exhibit the 
spirit of the age. The worth of human character is seen in 
trifling transactions ; and whether a man is to be set down as a 
patriot or a traitor — whether his memory should be cherished 
with respect, or held up to public scorn, may depend upon facts 
which can be learned only by studying the minute history of 
his times. There are many facts of a private nature that at 
first view appear trivial, which are yet important as showing 
the character of the age. The fact that "John Smith," " Sam- 
uel Brown," or any other individual was fined or whip]X3d in 
Plymouth Colony, in 1638, for " taking tobacco in the high- 
ways not above a mile from a dwelling-house, or at work in 
the field, where he doth not dine or eat his meat," is of no con- 
sequence to the present generation, when viewed in the ab- 
stract ; but when considered concretely, it shows the character 
of their criminal code at that period, and the spirit of the age 
when such laws were in force. The exploration of these local 
fields has its value, though no important fact be brought to 
light. The miner who has explored a tract of country, and has 
ascertained that no valuable mineral is there, aids the cause of 
science, and saves much unnecessary labor and many useless 



16 

experiments in pursuit of supposed treasure. He who examines 
the records of a Town, aUhough he brings out no important 
facts in his history, has performed a good work by showing 
that he has fully explored a barren field. 

If the value of histories is to be estimated by the amount 
of labor required in collecting the materials, Town histories 
would hold a conspicuous place. While the general historian 
deals with public events which are commonly recorded, the 
town historian is doomed to the drudgery of hunting up facts 
of which there is no connected record ; or one so brief that 
it only hints at a fact, or gives reason to suspect that there 
may be some fact, if you could only get at it. From some 
obscure hint, the explorer is put upon a track, which, after 
ransacking other musty records or dilapidated private papers, 
may enable him to bring out a full statement of the case ; or he 
may, after all his labor, find that no reliable information can be 
obtained. He will also find some important subject alluded to 
in a warrant for a Town Meeting, and on turning to the record 
of the meeting, he finds that the subject matter was referred to 
a committee, to report all the facts in the case at the next 
meeting. He then, fancying himself on the threshhold of 
important information, turns with eager eye to the proceedings 
of the next meeting, for the full and authentic account, and 
meets this meagre record : " The Committee appointed at the 
•last meeting submitted a detailed Report, which was accepted." 
Foiled in his attempt to possess himself of the facts, he turns 
to the files for the Report itself, and learns, to his mortification, 
that no files reaching back to that period are preserved. So, 
after all his toil and patient industry, he in very many cases 
realizes the full force of the poet's definition of wisdom : 

" 'Tis but to know how little can be known." 

There are two modes of presenting historical facts — each of 
which has its advantages. The one is, to give the documents 
containing the information ; the other is, to weave the facts 
contained in the documents into an independent narrative. 
The former mode is, perhaps, the most satisfactory to the 
thorough student of history ; while the latter is the most pleas- 
ing to the general reader. I have endeavored to combine the 



17 

two methods, so as to make the narrative suliiciently documen- 
tary, without destroying its popular character. When any fact 
in the Record is peculiarly important, or is stated in language 
remarkable for clearness or force, quaintness or beauty, I have 
generally adopted the language ; and when any declarations of 
sentiment are put forth by Preamble and Resolutions, I have, 
for the most part, given them verbatim. In other cases I have 
given the leading ideas in my own language. 

There is another method, that of weaving the main facts into 
the narrative, and at the same time, by quoting single expres- 
sions or short sentences, make the speaker or writer come in 
and tell a part of the story the historian is relating. Our own 
distinguished historian, Mr. Bancroft, is a striking instance of 
this. In this manner a lively interest is given to the narrative, 
making it racy and dramatic. But at the same time it becomes 
a serious question, whether this is not sacrificing one great 
object at which the historian should aim — a true picture of 
society, and a just delineation of events in all their bearings. 
By adopting the method alluded to above, the temptation is 
great to select the most sparkling sayings, or the most ultra or 
extravagant sentiments, in order to set them off against each 
other, for the sake of effect. In this way we have a vivid 
picture presented with dramatic effect, but it gives us false 
views of society, and an artistic rather than a true narrative of 
events. 

The humble historian of a Town has no field for display. 
He has to deal with ordinary events, stated in great detail, and 
must be content with a plain presentation of the little inci- 
dents which go to make up the life and doings of small com- 
munities. If I have succeeded in gathering up fragments 
which would otherwise be lost, and bringing together facts in 
relation to the Town and its early settlers, which were so scat- 
tered as to be beyond the reach of most of its citizens, my 
labor will not be in vain. I do not suppose that I have avoided 
all errors. No town history which ever has been, or ever will 
be written, can be free from inaccuracies. Many persons will 
find, in the case of their ancestors, that there are some things 
stated which do not accord with the traditions of the families ; 
but it does not folfow from this that any error has been 
committed. Tradition cannot be relied upon, especially with 



18 

reference to dates. I have often met with traditions of some 
act said to be performed by an individual, when it was per- 
fectly evident that the date of the act itself would place it 
before the birth or after the death of the individual to whom it 
is ascribed. Some traditions have so much of the marvelous 
in them as to render them so improbable, that no faithful his- 
torian would give them the sanction of his name. On the 
other hand, there will be family traditions perfectly reliable, 
and even recorded events in relation to individuals known and 
preserved in families, of which the historian is ignorant, and 
must remain so, unless the persons having the facts will com- 
municate them. If omissions of this kind are found in the 
following pages, the writer only regrets that the facts had 
not been communicated to him. It cannot be supposed that 
any historian, even of a town, can know the secret history or 
private records of every family in the place ; and if those who 
are possessed of the facts withhold them, the fault is not 
chargeable to the writer. We have made known our desire to 
possess all such information, and have given all that has come 
to hand, or could be obtained ; and our only regret is, that we 
have not been able to obtain more. 

The settlement of a country is frequently the result of 
remote causes, and the distinctive characteristics of its inhab- 
itants may often be traced to events which have long since 
transpired, and even to habits of thought the origin of which 
is almost forgotten. As the first settlers of our early New 
England Towns were of the Puritan stock, we can hardly do 
justice to their memories, without recurring for a moment to 
the character of the Puritans, the causes which called them 
into being, the treatment they received in the mother country, 
and the great object they had in view in emigrating to these 
.shores. The New England character may be said to have 
grown out of the Reformation in the sixteenth centmy, when 
the great doctrine of the " right of private judgment " was 
asserted and successfully maintained, in opposition to the 
absurd and arbitrary pretensions of the Papal Church. This 
doctrine so commended itself to the good sense of the reflecting 
part of the community, and so moved the great heart of the 
devout portion of the church, that though it received several 



19 

severe checks, it could not be eradicated. The seductive lib- 
ertinism of Henry VIII. interposed a barrier to the spread of 
this doctrine, the cruel persecutions of bloody Mary checked 
its outward growth, and thereby gave it a firmer and deeper 
root in the human heart, and so prepared the manly and con- 
scientious worshipers to withstand the bold prerogative of the 
determined and intolerant Elizabeth. 

This great doctrine of the Reformation had taken such hold 
of the sincere Protestants, that what was at first asserted as a 
right, they soon regarded as a duty; and to yield this privilege 
was to deny " the Lord that bought them." The profligacy 
which prevailed, both in church and state, tended further to 
mark the line of separation between the great mass of the 
church, and the more devout portion ; and the Puritans, as the 
latter were called, gradually became a distinct sect. Not, how- 
ever, that they were so acknowledged by Elizabeth, who ad- 
mitted no dissent from the Established Church. Though she 
was a professed Protestant, and gloried in their separation from 
what they denomuiated the '' Mother of Harlots," she would 
tolerate no non-conformity to her church. The ornaments and 
garments worn by the clergy during the reign of Mary, when 
the Roman religion and rites were triumphant, Elizabeth was 
desirous of preserving in the Protestant service. This was a 
cause of great discontent among a large body of her subjects ; 
many of whom refused to attend at those churches where the 
habits and ceremonies of the Church of Rome were introduced. 
The Q,ueen made many attempts to repress any innovation, 
even in the forms of the religion she had established. She 
had recourse to almost every measure to bring the Puritans to 
subjection. A Commission was instituted, clothed with inquis- 
itorial power and nnlimited jm-isdiction, who hunted out the 
Non-conformists, and treated them with extreme cruelty. 
Thousands were fined, many were cast into prison, where they 
endured evils more intolerable than those inflicted by the in- 
tolerant Mary, till death put an end to their sufferings. During 
the whole reign of Elizabeth and her successor, the Puritans 
experienced almost every species of persecution. Deprived of 
every religious privilege, himted down by Protestant inquisitors, 
cast into prison without cause and without trial, driven from 
their livings, and banished from their own country ; it is nat- 



20 

ural to suppose that they would become firm and decided, if 
not obstinate and morose. But if this long and unremitted 
persecution developed the sterner traits of character, it also 
gave rise to a serious and devout frame of mind. This was 
shown in their manner of spending the Sabbath, refraining 
from all diversions on that day, and employing the whole of it 
in religions exercises. They also kept at the greatest distance 
from profaneness. and were remarkable for their sobriety and 
the moral virtues in general. On the other hand, the friends of 
the Court ridiculed their preciseness, and affected to distinguish 
themselves from them, more perhaps than they otherwise 
would have done, by profligacy and licentiousness of every 
kind. 

Regarding the rites of the English Church as idolatrous, the 
Puritans sought to establish a form of worship more simple, and 
more in accordance with the usages of the primitive Church ; 
but this small privilege was denied them. They must join in 
rites which they abhorred, or feel the sting of the oppressor's 
scourge. They saw many of the leading ecclesiastics fawning 
around the throne, and the ruling sovereign assuming the ab- 
surd prerogatives of the Roman Pontiff. Nor was it in eccle- 
siastical matters alone that they beheld encroachments upon 
private rights. They saw in the affairs of state a strong ten- 
dency to despotism. In fact, the monarch on the throne was 
the ruling ecclesiastic ; and it required no great foresight to 
perceive, that if he could interfere with affairs which involved 
a man's duty to his God, he could, with a much greater show 
of consistency, interfere in matters which related to the state. 
They saw in the policy of the crown the extinguishment of 
all they held dear — their rights as Christians and as citizens. 
They had labored hard to correct these abuses. They had 
sought for redress by petition, by remonstrance, and even in 
some cases by arms. But it was all in vain. 

Not, however, that their labors were entirely lost. They had 
sown the good seed, and though they were not permitted to 
reap the precious harvest, they had in some degree stayed the 
rushing tide of despotism, and had contributed largely to rear 
up a generation who should know their rights, and " knowing, 
dare maintain them." It is admitted by the infidel Hume, who 
ridicules the zeal and fervor of the Puritans, that it was '' by 



21 

them alone the precious spark of hberty had been kindled and 
was preserved, and to them the English owe the whole freedom 
of their constitution." Having taken part in the long struggle 
on the question of prerogative between the Crown and Parlia- 
ment, they were fully imbued with the great principles of 
English liberty ; and the natural sternness of character which 
grew up amid persecution, led them to stand up manfully in 
support of their rights. However others might falter, their 
patriotism, like their religious faith, was unwavering. And 
though they were in the minority in their own country, their 
influence there was not inconsiderable. In the midst of a cor- 
rupt age and nation, when dissoluteness reigned in the court, 
and great looseness, to say the least, pervaded the church, the 
stern integrity, the rigid morals, and the unfaltering faith of the 
Puritans seemed to rebuke the dissolute, and to command the 
silent respect of thousands by whom they were persecuted. 

The Puritans, as a class, possessed marked traits of character. 
Upon the known firmness of the English as a people, was en- 
grafted an unwavering religious faith, that gave them a fixed 
and steadfast purpose from which they could not be induced to 
swerve. Their religion was of the strict and austere type, 
which naturally leaves its impress upon the character. They 
had for a long period been disciplined in the school of affliction, 
which strengthened their faith and confirmed their fortitude. 
The persecutions to which they had been subjected, and the 
inducements which had been held out to them to conform to 
the requirements of the Established Church, had driven from 
them the timid, or drawn from them the men of easy virtue ; so 
that the remainder of the sect were like pure metal, purged from 
the dross by the refiner's fire, and consolidated by the hammer 
and the anvil. 

Such was the material of which this sect was composed ; and 
justice compels us to state that the persecution through which 
they passed, though it had increased their faith and confirmed 
their fortitude, had not developed the gentle virtues nor sweet- 
ened their disposition. Living in an age somewhat intolerant, 
they had imbibed the spirit of the times ; and having the faith 
of assurance, they were not prepared to tolerate a departure from 
their religion, or yield their opinions to any man or class of men. 
They were ardently attached to their religion, and esteemed 



22 

above all things the privilege of worshiping God according to 
the dictates of their own consciences. 

Such was the general character of the Puritans in their own 
country. And the class that came to New England were not 
the outcasts of the sect, the dregs or scum of that community ; 
they were men of good character and standing in their own 
country. They were not the rich lordlings, who came here to 
build splendid palaces, and live in indolence and ease ; but the 
industrious farmer, the hardy mechanic — men from the com- 
mon walks of life — the stay and support of every country. 
They were the very class of men best adapted to the laborious 
task of clearing the forest and converting a wilderness into fruit- 
ful fields. They were not daring adventurers, merely seeking 
their fortune in a new country, that they might raise themselves 
to opulence, and become renowned in the history of the world. 
No ; they had higher and nobler ends in view. 

They came to these shores that they might enjoy, in peace, 
that religion which they esteemed more valuable than pleasure, 
fame or pelf, The strictest of the sect of Puritans, the firmest 
of the firm, the hardiest of a hardy race, they were the very 
men for the enterprise on which they were about to embark. 
To say that they were perfect, would be to say that they were 
not men. To acknowledge that they had defects of character, 
is only admitting that they had not risen above all the follies 
and vices of the age in which they lived. They had their fail- 
ings, but they were the failings of sincere and devout men. 
Whatever in them was stern and unamiable, was but the natural 
fruit of those strong and masculine virtues which fitted them 
for great and daring enterprises, and enabled them to overcome 
obstacles from which the mild and timid would have shrunk 
back in dismay. The great controlling principle which moved 
them to action, was an unwavering religious faith, and if it did 
not in all cases, in the true gospel sense, " work by love and 
purify the heart," it showed itself in a rigid justice, an abiding 
fortitude, and an untiring perseverance in whatever they deemed 
to be right and true. 

Their great idea was that of religions liberty. To enjoy that 
blessed privilege, they had left their native country, given up 
all the tender endearments of home, torn themselves from rela- 
tives and friends, and committed themselves to the guidance of 



23 

that Almighty Being in whom they put their trust. Emerging 
from the spiritual despotism of Rome and the temporal despotism 
of England, they naturally imbibed the idea of one central 
power ; and though they transferred their allegiance to the Great 
Supreme, they fell in some degree into the error common in all 
ages, of ascribing to their Divinity the attributes which appear- 
ed most prominent in the rulers of their own age. The Puritans 
who settled New England, cherished in some degree the Jewish 
idea, and were accustomed to view God in the character of a 
Sovereign, rather than a Father. This gave a tinge to their 
whole system of faith and practice. Their views of civil gov- 
ernment, though in advance of the age, as containing more of 
the democratic principle, were nevertheless tinctured with the- 
ocracy. Like the Romish church, they believed in infallibility ; 
and though they justly ascribed this high prerogative to the 
Deity, they appear to have cherished a lingering belief, that the 
divine Spirit so dwelt with men, that the church composed of 
sincere worshipers would almost necessarily be guided right. 
This impression will account, in some measure, for the course 
they pursued towards the Baptists, Quakers, and other dissent- 
ing sects. 

Had they been more mild and gentle in their manners, more 
pliant and impressible in their character, more yielding in their 
disposition, and more easy in their virtue ; had they conformed 
more readily to the manners and customs of the gay and 
thoughtless, been more compromising in their policy, and less 
strict in their opinion ; in a word, had they inherited a faith less 
firm, a fortitude less unflinching, and a will less persistent, they 
might have appeared more amiable in their generation, and 
their characters might have been more attractive, in these days 
of compliance and compromise ; but they would have been less 
qualified to fill the sphere allotted to them by Divine Provi- 
dence, and would probably have failed in their attempt to set 
up a commonwealth founded on the great principles of allegi- 
ance to God, and accountability to him, both as individuals and 
as members of the body politic. 

The Puritans have left the impress of their characters upon 
the commonwealth, and in some degree upon the country. 
The present characteristics and condition of the different States 
in the Union, are in a good degree the reflex of the original 



24 

settlers. While New England, and some of the North-west- 
ern States, exhibit many of the traits of the Puritan character, 
Virginia and South Carolina, and the States settled by them, 
bear in a degree those airs of fancied superiority, which 
showed themselves in the characters of those shabby genteel 
gentlemen, and swaggering idlers of ruined fortmies, who ac- 
companied John Smith to Virginia ; and who, though too proud 
to labor, were ever ready to claim their full share of the pro- 
ducts of the labors of others. Massachusetts and Virginia, 
to-day, reflect the character of their first settlers. The men who 
landed at Plymouth and who came over with Winthrop, had 
but little resemblance to those who accompanied John Smith 
and settled at Jamestown. The sobriety and industry of the 
one class, and the idle recklessness of the other ; the reverence 
and love of order which characterized the former, and the in- 
subordinate and rebellious spirit manifested by the latter, are 
fully reflected by the two States at the present time. The 
social equality of the New England settlers has given us a 
population of freemen, where all enjoy equal rights and privi- 
leges ; while the haughty aspirations of the few in the Virginia 
settlement, have given rise to that odious system of servitude 
which naturally tends to make one part of the community 
tyrants, by making another part chattels. Well, then, may we 
glory in our Puritan ancestry, and strive to imitate their cardi- 
nal virtues. 

When the Puritans first came to New England, they probably 
had no fixed plan of building up an Empire on this continent. 
They possibly aspired at nothing higher than establishing a 
community where they might dwell in peace, and enjoy, immo- 
lested, the religion they professed. They had, however, enlarged 
and liberal views on the subject of education, and rightly 
judged that sound learning was essential to the purity of the 
Church and the well-being of the State. Next, therefore, to 
the establishment of churches, they provided for the education 
of the young. No doubt the views of our ancestors underwent 
some modification after their arrival on these shores. Keeping 
their original idea of a free religious community in view, they 
soon perceived that it would be in their power to build up a 
free Commonwealth on the broad basis of religion. Every 
thing here seemed to favor this enlarged idea. Providence had 



25 

prepared the way for them. Though what is now New Eng- 
land had been the abode of several warlike and populous tribes, 
they had by their repeated wars materially reduced the popula- 
tion. Add to this, a desolating pestilence had reigned a few 
years before, which had nearly depopulated a large section of 
country around Massachusetts Bay. This event had in a man- 
ner thrown open to the English settlers a large tract of country 
which they could occupy without detriment to the aborigines. 
This fact contributed largely to the extending of the English 
settlement. Our fathers thought, and with a good degree of 
justice, that the earth was made for man ; and if God in his 
providence had made it desolate, any people, and especially 
those driven from their own coimtry by oppression, might right- 
fully take possession of it. 

After the Massachusetts Colony had established themselves, 
the General Court having in many cases extinguished the 
Indian title to the land of wliich they were in possession, freely 
granted farms and townships to individuals and to companies 
who were willing to settle upon them, bring them under culti- 
vation, and maintain a gospel mhiistry for the glory of God 
and the edification of his people. This desire for land became 
a kind of passion among all classes in the community. All 
ranks and professions were more or less afflicted with this 
mania, from the elders in the church to the most humble pro- 
fessor — from the Chief Magistrate of the Colony to his poorest 
subject. 

The two great causes which led to the settlement of most 
of the towns in the interior, were the love of liberty and the 
love of land. The Anglo-Saxon race seem to have an innate 
dread of being surrounded by neighbors. The Rev. Thomas 
Hooker, who came to Massachusetts with his flock in 1633, 
left Cambridge in 1636, performed a long and difficult journey 
through the wilderness, and commenced a settlement at Hart- 
ford, Connecticut, because he thought it unwise to permit 
settlements as near to each other as Charlestown and Roxbury 
and Watertown were to Cambridge. The complaint of being 
" straitened for the want of more land," which was put forth 
by him thus early, appears to have been adopted by most of 
the early settlers, and became a fixed principle with them, and 
a troublesome legacy to their descendants. 



26 

The town of Sudbury, of which Marlborough was an 
oifshoot, was granted as early as 1638, to Messrs. Pendleton, 
Noyse, Brown, and Company, and was incorporated the year 
following. In 1640, on petition of the inhabitants of Sudbury, 
the General Court granted them an addition of a mile in 
breadth on the south-east and south-west sides of their Planta- 
tion, " provided it may not hinder a new Plantation, if there 
may be a convenient place and accommodation for one." The 
same year, six hundred additional acres were granted to Sud- 
bury. In consequence of the exposed condition of Sudbury, 
Concord and Dedham, the General Court, in 1645, ordered, 
" That no man now inhabiting or settled in either of these 
towns (whether married or single) shall remove to any other 
town without the allowance of a magistrate or other selectman 
of that town, until it shall please God to settle peace again." 

But if the people of Sudbury could not go out of town in 
quest of land, they could do that which amounted to nearly 
the same thing — viz., bring land into toion. For on petition, 
the General Court, in 1649, passed the following order : " Sud- 
bury is granted two miles westward next adioyning them for 
their farther enlargement ; provided that it prejudice not Wil- 
liam Brown in his two hmidred acres already granted." 

But not satisfied with the possessions they had already 
acquired, several of the leading inhabitants of Sudbury, in 
May, 1656, presented the following petition to the General 
Court : 

" To the Hon. Governor, Dep. Governor, Magistrates, and 
Deputies of the General Court now assembled in Boston. 

" The Humble Petition of several of the inhabitants of 
Sudbury, whose names are here underwritten, showeth : That 
whereas your Petitioners have lived divers years in Sudbury, 
and God hath been pleased to increase our children, Avhich are 
now diverse of them grown to man's estate ; and wee, many 
of us, grown into years, so that wee should bee glad to see 
them settled before the Lord take us away from hence, as also 
God having given us some considerable quantity of cattle, so 
that wee are so streightened that we cannot so comfortably 
subsist as could be desired ; and some of us having taken some 
pains to view the country ; wee have found a place which 



27 

lyeth westward about eight miles from Sudbury, which wee 
conceive might be comfortable for our subsistence. 

" It is therefore the humble request of your Petitioners to this 
Hon'd Court, that you would bee pleased to grant unto us eight 
miles square, or so much land as may containe to eight miles 
square, for to make a Plantation. 

" If it shall please this Hon'd Court to grant our Petition, it 
is further then the request of your Petitioners to this Hon'd 
Court, that you will be pleased to appoint Mr. Thomas Dan- 
forth, or Liesten^' Fisher to lay out the bounds of the Planta- 
tion ; and wee shall satisfy those whom this Hon'd Court shall 
please to employ in it. So apprehending this weighty occa- 
sion, wee shall no further trouble this Hon'd Court, but shall 
ever pray for your happiness. 

" Edmund Rice, John Howe, 

William Ward, John Bent, Sen'r, 

Thomas King, John Maynard, 

John Woods, Richard Newton, 

Thomas Goodnow, Peter Bent, 

John Ruddocke, Edward Rice." 
Henry Rice, 

To this Petition the following answer was made, at a Gen- 
eral Court held in Boston, May 14, 1656, 

" In answer to the Petition of the aforesaid inhabitants of 
Sudbury, the Court judgeth it meete to grant them a propor- 
tion of land six miles, or otherwise in some convenient form 
equivalent thereunto, at the discretion of the Committee, in 
the place desired : provided it hinder no former grant ; that 
there be a town settled with twenty or more families within 
three years, so as an able ministry may bee there maintained. 

" And it is ordered that Mr. Edward Jackson, Capt. Eleazer 
Lusher, Ephraim Child, with Mr. Thomas Danforth or Leistenl!i 
Fisher, shall bee, and hereby are appointed a Committee to 
lay out the bounds thereof, and make return to the next Court 
of Election, or else the grant to bee void." 

But it appears by the records of the General Court, that a 
portion of the territory asked for by the Sudbury men, had 
already been granted to the Indians. At a Court held May 3^ 
1654, " Upon the Petition of Mr. Eliot, in behalf of the In- 



28 

dians, liberty is granted to the Indians of Ockoocangansett,* 
being eight miles west of Sudbury, to make a town there, pro- 
vided it do not prejudice any former grant, nor that they shall 
dispose of it without leave first had and obtained of this 
Court." 

This grant, being prior to the one made to the inhabitants of 
Sudbury, was carried out in good faith by the Colony, as will 
be seen by the records of the Court. 

" In reference to the case between Mr. Eliot, in behalf of the 
Indians of Ognonikongquamesit, and the Sudbury men ; the 
Court finding that the Indians had a grant of a township in the 
place before the English, the Court determines and orders that 
Mr. Edward Jackson, Mr. Tho. Danforth, Mr. Ephraim Child, 
and Capt. Lusher, or any three of them, as a Committee, shall 
with the first convenient opportunity, if it may be before win- 
ter, lay out a township in the said place of 6,000 acres to the 
Indians, in which, at least, shall be three or four hundred acres 
of meadow ; and in case there be enough left for a convenient 
township for the Sudbury men, to lay it out for them ; the grant 
of Mr. Alcocke's (842 acres granted in 1655) confirmed by the 
last Court out of both excepted and reserved, and the Indians to 
have the Hill on which they are, and the rest of the land to be 
laid out adjoining to it as may be convenient to both Planta- 
tions." 

This plantation was laid out by the Committee above desig- 
nated, and accepted by the Com-t, as will appear more fully 
hereafter. As the early history of Marlborough is somewhat 
confused by the fact that there were two plantations — the In- 
dian and English, the former partly included in and partially 
surrounded by the latter — it seems necessary to state that the 
Indian plantation, known by the name of Ockoocangansett, 
was situated in the north-easterly section of the present town- 
ship, and included the Hill back of the old Meeting-House 
Common, and in fact the Common itself, and the spot on which 



* Amidst the different spelling of this name, I have adopted the one which 
prevails in the Marlborough Records. Different Records present us with the 
following orthography — Agoganquamatiet, Agoganquamaset, OgnonikoJigquamesit, 
Ogkoonhquonkames, Ognoinkongquamescit. Some persons have supposed that 
different places or hills were intended by these apparently different names ; but 
this is a mistake. The same place is intended by each. 



29 

the old Meeting-Hoiise stood. It is also important to distin- 
guish between the " Indian Planting Field " and the '* Indian 
Plantation ; " the former consisted of some one hundred and 
fifty acres located on the Hill back of the Common, near the 
present site of the depot of the Marlborough Branch Railroad, 
and was more or less cultivated ; the latter extended north and 
east about three miles, and contained six thousand acres, the 
most of which was wild and uncultivated, until it passed out 
of the hands of the Indians. 

The English plantation was situated to the south and west 
of the Indian plantation, and by subsequent grants nearly sur- 
rounded it. This plantation, before it was incorporated, was 
known by the name of Whipsufferadge or Whipsuppenicke ; 
the latter sounding like better Indian, is here preferred. A plan 
of the English plantation was made in May, 1667, by Samuel 
Andrews, Surveyor, which was approved by the Deputies, 17th 
3 mo. 1667, and consented to by the Magistrates. 

This plan was long in possession of the town, but is now 
unfortunately lost ; the original is however to be found in the 
Archives of the State. This plantation, by admeasurement, 
contained 29,419 acres, which, with the 6,000 acres reserved 
for the Indians, made 35,419 acres. From the north-west 
angle of the Indian planting field, the boundary line between 
the Indian plantation on the east, and the English plantation 
on the west, runs north seven degrees west three miles, to a 
point beyond the Assabet * River ; thence west twenty-five 
degrees south seven miles ; thence south-south-east five miles 
to the south-west extremity of the plantation ; thence east nine 
degrees north two miles and three-fourths, leading into Cedar 
swamp ; thence south-east two hundred and twenty-six rods on 
Sudbury River ; thence due east two miles and three quarters ; 
thence north-east by north two miles and one himdred and 
twenty rods ; thence north seventeen degrees east three hun- 
dred and forty-eight rods ; thence due north one mile and three- 
fourths, which reaches to the Indian line ; thence three miles 

* The name of this river is variously ^-ritten. "We find it Elzebeth, Asabeth, 
Assabeth, and Elizabeth ; though it is now generally -vv-ritten Assabet. The 
Post Office in the south-east part of Stow is called Assabet, which will give 
the name a permanent character* 
5 



30 

due west on said line, which completes the boundary of the 
English plantation. 

It would seem from the above boundaries that the grant 
exceeded the designated quantity of land. This, however, 
was no fault of the proprietors. The survey was made by the 
officers of the Court, and adopted by the deputies and magis- 
trates. Nor was it at all unusual to have their surveys contain 
more land than was mentioned in the grant. In laying out 
these townships, regard was generally had to the character of 
the country ; and as the boundaries were more or less irregular, 
they always calculated to make good measure ; for the doc- 
trine which now so extensively prevails was not entirely un- 
known to our ancestors — that there is no great harm in cheat- 
ing the body politic, especially in land operations. 

We also see in the laying out of this township, the senti- 
ment of that age reflected. Meadow lands at that period were 
generally sought. This will appear from the fact that Sud- 
bury, and Concord, and Lancaster, and Brookfield, and several 
towns on the Connecticut, where there were large tracts of 
meadow, were among the first towns settled. And whoever 
looks into the localities where the first families settled in the 
earlier towns, will generally find that they were in the neigh- 
borhood of meadows. The meadows at that day were gen- 
erally open, and produced an abundance of grass, thereby 
giving the English settlers a supply of food for their cattle, 
without the labor of clearing dense forests.* 

Marlborough did not, in its central part, contain any large 
tract of meadow land ; but by extending its boundaries so as to 
take in the valley of the Assabet, a portion of the meadows on 
Sudbury river, and a large number of smaller meadows and 
swamps, the wants of the people in these respects were well 
supplied. And the value they placed upon these low lands, 
fully appears by the fact that immediately after assigning to the 
proprietors their house lots, they proceeded at once to divide 

* At the first settlement of the country, many of the meadows were found 
free from wood, like the prairies of the West. This is generally ascribed to the 
prevalence of fires set by the natives, for the purpose of destroying the hiding 
places of their game, and at the same time to enable them in the open land to 
intercept any enemies they might be pursuing. The fact that these meadows 
are inclined to grow up to wood in these days, shows that some such cause 
must have kept them open up to that time. 



31 

and lay out their meadows, tliat they might have " grass for 
cattle " as well as " fruits for the service of man." 

The Indian Plantation is so intimately connected with Marl- 
borough, and the history of the two is so interwoven, that it 
seems highly desirable to point out, as nearly as may be, its 
local position. From two old maps, drawn at different times, 
and by different persons, and varying somewhat from each 
other, I have constructed a diagram, which may enable the 
reader to form some idea of its situation. The draft I have 
given includes some additions or alterations that were made 
between 1667 and 1700 ; and especially a grant made to Marl- 
borough in 1700, on the line of Stow, north of the Indian 
Plantation. 



..--" 3 




V. 



EXPLANATION. 

The dotted line denotes the boundary of Marlborough before Wcstborough and 
Southborough were set off. The plain line denotes the boundary of the Indian Plant- 
ation. The figures are explained below. 

1. The Indian Planting Field, on the south-west corner of which the Meeting- 
House was located. 2. The Indian Plantation. 3. A section of the Assabet River. 

Having obtained the grant of the township at Whipsuppe- 
nicke, the proprietors, on the 25th of September, 1656, held 
their first meeting, at which the following votes were passed : 

" It is concluded and ordered. That all y- doe take up lotts in 
y' Plantation shall pay to all public charges y' shall arise upon 



32 * 

y^ Plantation, according to their House Lotts, and themselves to 
be residents there within two years, or set A man in, that y* 
Town shall approve of, or else to lose their lotts ; but if God 
shall take away any man by death, such A one hath liberty to 
give his lott to Avhom he will, this order to the contrary not- 
withstanding." 

The same year, at a public meeting, 

William Ward, •\ „r , , . ^ • r- 

_-, ,r- / " Were chosen to put the Aiiairs or 

Thomas Kmg, f , . , t^, • • , , 

_,„,,, , > the said new Plantation in an orderly 

John Ruddocke, and \ w » 

John Howe, y ^' 

In September, 1657, the following names, in addition to the 
original grantees, appear on their list : 

William Kerly, Solomon Johnson, 

John Rediat, Samuel Rice, 

John Johnson, Peter King, 

Thomas Rice, Christopher Banister. 

Measures were taken at an early day to divide a portion of 
their lands among the proprietors, so as to facilitate the settle- 
ment of the plantation. Expenses having occurred, and ques- 
tions arising relative to the respective titles to their lots, the 
proprietors, at a meeting held December 26, 1659, adopted 
measures to relieve these embarrassments, and solve these 
doubts. 

" It is ordered that all such as lay clayme to any interest in 
the new Plantion at Whipsuppenicke are to perfect their house 
lots by the 25th of March next ensuing, or else loose all their 
interest in the aforesaid Plantation. 

" It is also ordered that every one y' hath A Lott in y^ afore- 
said Plantation, shall pay twenty shillings by the 25th of March 
ensuing, or else to loose all legal interest in y^ aforesaid Plan- 
tation." 

" At a Meeting of y^ inhabitants and proprietors of this Plan- 
tation y® 6th of y^ xi month, 1659, 

"It is ordered that A Rate bee made for diffraying and satis- 
fying y^ charge for Laying out of this plantation and other 
publicke charges to be collected of the inhabitants and propri- 



33 

<eters of y* same, at y* rate of nine pence per acre upon all 
House Letts already taken up, and upon such as shall here- 
after be taken up." 

Immediately before the grant of the Plantation of Whipsup- 
penicke to Edmund Rice and others of Sudbury, the General 
Court granted to Mr. John Alcocke, and confirmed unto him 
842 acres of land which he had caused to be laid out between 
the two Indian towns of Natick and Whipsuppenicke, bounded 
according to draft presented to the Court, together with permis- 
sion to add one hundred and odd acres more, provided it hinder 
no former grant. In virtue of authority here given, 1,042 acres 
were laid out and confirmed to Mr. Alcocke. But a contro- 
versy immediately arose between him and the Whipsuppenicke 
Company, which claimed a portion of his grant. This contro- 
versy was happily terminated in 1659, when John Alcocke, 
on the one part, and Edmund Rice, John Ruddocke and 
John Howe, in behalf of the proprietors of the plantation, 
entered into an agreement by which two hundred acres of 
Alcocke's grant were relinquished to the proprietors of the plan- 
tation. Alcocke subsequently petitioned the General Court, 
which granted him two hundred acres of land in " lieu of the 
two hundred acres he grattiffyed y® plantation of Whipsup- 
penicke out of his oune." 

Mr. Alcocke was an inhabitant of Roxbury, and was a man 
of liberal education. He was often employed by the Colony, 
and for his services had several grants of land. The land 
above referred to was on the south-easterly borders of Marl- 
borough. After the death of Alcocke, this tract, or " farm," 
as it was generally called, fell into the hands of his heirs, 
among whom was Ephraim Hunt, of Weymouth, who married 
Alcocke's daughter. On the 25th of December, 1695, Samuel 
Bigelow, John Bemis, Joseph Morse, and Samuel Morse, 
described as husbandmen of Watertown, bought of said Hmit, 
for three hundred pounds, three hundred and fifty acres of land 
formerly granted to Dr. Alcocke, bordering on Marlborough, 
and called 'The Farm.' Joseph Morse settled in the house 
said to have been built by Alcocke ; Samuel built southerly, 
and their brother Jonathan afterward bought and built on a 
tract of land adjoining, so that one garrison would protect all 
the families. 



34 

In • 1700 the town petitioned the General Court that the 
farms bounding upon the town be set to Marlborough, which 
was in part granted. But ' The Farm ' itself was not included 
in this annexation. The inhabitants at first were willing to 
remain as they were, being exempt from all municipal bur- 
dens. But the inhabitants of Marlborough complained that 
the people upon ' The Farm ' were exempt from taxation, 
while they enjoyed many of the privileges of the town. In 
1718, Joseph Morse, John Bigelow, John Sherman, Samuel 
Bigelow, Thomas Bigelow and Daniel Harrington, who re- 
sided on ' The Farm,' joined the inhabitants of Marlborough 
in a petition to the General Court, that said ' Farm ' be 
annexed to Marlborough. The Court granted their request, 
and the territory was annexed to the town, and is known to 
this day as ' The Farm.' 

The proprietors of the Plantation soon felt the need of being 
erected into a municipal corporation, and consequently preferred 
their prayer for that purpose to the Court. On petition of the 
proprietors, the General Court, May 31, 1660, Old Style,* took 
action, which is thus recorded in the Colony Records. 

* By the change of style, this Act of Incorporation falls upon the 12th of 
June in 1860. It may be interesting to some, to state the occasion for the 
change from Old to New Style. The Julian Year consisted of 365 days and 
6 hours — thus making a year too long by about 11 minutes. In 1582 Pope 
Gregory XIII. attempted to reform the Calendar. From the time of the Council 
of Nice to the time of Gregory, this excess of eleven minutes amounted to ten 
days. In order to obviate this error, it was ordained that the year 1582 
should consist of 365 days only, and that ten days, between the 4th and 15th of 
October, should be thrown out of the Calendar for that year ; and also to pre- 
vent any further irregularity, that no year commencing a century should be 
leap-year, excepting each four hundredth year ; whereby three days are abated 
every four hundred years, that being nearly equal to eleven minutes for every 
year during that period ; leaving an error of only one day in 5,200 years. 

The Calendar before the days of Gregory was the Julian, and is commonly 
called Old Style, and the Calendar of Gregory has been denominated New 
Style. Though the New Style was at once adopted in Catholic countries, it 
was not adopted by Great Britain or her Colonies till 1752. Previous to that 
year, two methods of beginning the year prevailed in England ; the ecclesi- 
astical and legal year beginning on the 25th of March, and the historical year 
on the 1st of January. The change of Style adopted by England, 1752, fixed 
January 1st as the commencement of the year. 

This difference in the commencement of the year led to a system of double 
dating from the first of January to the twenty-fifth of March — thus : January 
10, 1724-5 or 172|— the 4 denoting the Ecclesiastical, and the 5 the Historical 
year. From 1582 to 1699 the difference in the styles was 10 days ; from 1700 
to 1800, 11 days ; since 1800, 12 days. 



35 

" In answer to the petition of the VVhipsuppenicke planters, 
this Court considering theire former obstructions, doe confirme 
theire grante, and lands thereof, as it was laid ont by the Com- 
mittee empowered thereto by this Court, in case they proceed 
in planting the same according to the intent of the Court in 
their first grant, and the same be accomplished within two 
years next ensuing. 

"■ And it is ordered that the name of the said plantation shall 
be called Marlborow : and that Mr. Chauncy* be by them 
repaid all his charges expended in laying out his farm in the 
place, and he hath liberty to lay out the same in any lands not 
formerly granted by this Court." 

Having been erected into a town, the proprietors at once 
entered upon the duties of a municipal corporation. But unfor- 
tunately their early records were meagre, and some of them have 
been lost. We are compelled to rely mainly upon the Records 
of the Proprietors, instead of the Records of the Town. 

* The Pond situated in what is now "SVestborough, has from the earliest 
day of the settlement, been known by the name of "Chauncy;" and in fact 
that name was formerly given to the whole of that section of Marlborough. 
Rev. Mr. Parkman, of Westborough, who was settled there in 1721, gives the 
following account of the origin of the name. "It is said in early times one Mr. 
Chauncy was lost in one of the swamps here, and from hence this part of the 
town had its name." This tradition is undoubtedly fabulous. The Records of 
the General Court contain facts which will place this matter in its true light. 
President Chauncy, the first of the name in the Colony, owing to the smallness 
of his salary as head of the College, had several grants of land. The Commis- 
sioners for locating one of these grants, make the following Report : 

" Whereas John Stone and Andrew Belcher were appointed to lay out a farme 
for Mr. Charles Chauncy, President of Harvard College, we have gone and look- 
ed on a place, and there is taken up a tract of land bounded on this manner ; on 
the east by a little swampe neare an Indian wigwam with an orchard of apple trees 
belonging to the wigwam, a playne joyning to the swamp, the playne runing to 
a great Pond, and from thence to Assebeth River; and this line is circular on 
the north side ; the south line runing to the south side of a piece of meadow call- 
ed Jacob's Meadow, and so to continue till it reach to the said Assebeth River. 

" 18 : 8 : 1659. Andkew Belcher." 

The following year, on petition of the proprietors of Marlborough, the Court 
confirmed their former grant, and as it included the grant made to Mr. Chauncy, 
it was provided that Marlborough should pay to said Chauncy " all his charges 
expended in laying out his farm, and he hath liberty to lay out the same in 
any lands not formerly granted by the Court." Chauncy accordingly gave up 
his farm, but left his name upon the place ; and so Chauncy Pond, to this day, 
marks the locality of his grant, and the name will in all probability rest upon 
that sheet of water as long as the records of the early settlements are known. 



36 



"At a Meeting of the inhabitants of the town, (ordered by 
the General Court to be called Marlborough,) Sept. 20, 1660 : 

" It is ordered. That every person y' claims any interest in 
the town of Marlborough, shall pay to all publicke charge, both 
for the minister and for all other town charges that have arisen 
about the plantation to this day from the beginning thereof, 
according to their proportion in y^ rate now presented with said 
proportion due ; every person to pay at or before the 10th of 
November next ensuing, or else loose all legal interest in the 
aforesaid plantation ; that is to say, four pence an acre for each 
acre of their House Lotts to the Minister, and three pence for 
all the estate that hath been kept or brought to keep, being 
found in the town or about the town ; and nine pence an acre 
for every acre of their House Lotts to town charges, till all the 
debts that are due from the town to them that have been em- 
ployed by the town or the plantation thereof." 

This vote is signed by 

Edmund Rice, William Kerly, 

Thomas King, Henry Kerly, 

Solomon Johnson, John Howe, 

Richard Newton, Christopher Banister, 

William Ward, John Johnson. 

Thomas Goodnow, John Ruddocke. 

These men were undoubtedly residents in the town at that 
time, but this could not have been the whole number of the 
male inhabitants. 

It seems that they were, like all the New England settlers, 
alive to the great subject of religious institutions ; for at the 
same meeting, "It is ordered that there bee a rate made flbr 
Mr. William Brimsmead, Minister, to bee collected of the inhab- 
itants and proprietors of the town (for six months) at the rate 
of four pence per acre upon House Lotts, and three pence per 
Pound upon cattle." 

Like other communities starting into being, they appear to 
have had plenty of business on hand. They proceeded on the 
26th of November to lay out their house lots. As some portion 
of them had been in the township two or three years previous 
to this division, it is probable that in some cases, it was rather 
a confirmation than an original grant. As the persons to whom 



87 



these lots were assigned were either inhabitants at the time or 
soon became so, I will give their names, and the quantity of 
land to each. 

Names. Acres. 

Edmund Rice, 50 

William Ward, .... 50 

John Ruddocke, .... 50 

Thomas Goodnow, ... 82 

Joseph Rice, 22 

Samuel Rice, 21 

Christopher Banister, . . 16 

Thomas King, 39^ 

William Kerly, .... 30 

Solomon Johnson, ... 23 

John Johnson, 30 

Richard Newton, .... 30 

John Howe, Sen 30 

John Howe, Jr 16 

Henry Kerly, 11)^ 

Richard^Barnes, . ... Id 

Thomas Rice, 35 

Joseph Holmes, .... 18 

Samuel Howe, 10 



Names. 


Acres. 


Andrew Belcher, 


. . 20 


Obadiah Ward, 


. . . 21 


Edward Rice, . 


. . . 35 


Richard Ward, 


. . . 18 


John Woods, Sen 


. . 30 


John Maynard, 


. . 23 


Peter King, 


. . . 22 


Benjamin Rice, 


. . 24 


A Minister, . . 


. . 30 


Peter Bent, . . 


. . 30 


John Bellows, . 


. . 20 


Abraham Howe, 


. . 25 


Thomas Goodnow 


,Jr. . 20 


John Rutter, . 


. . 30 


John Barrett, . 


. . 18 


John Rediat, . 


. . 22i 


A Black-Smith, . 


. . 30 


Henry Axtell, . . 


. . 15 


John Newton, . 


. . 16 



The nmnber of acres granted to the thirty-eight parties men- 
tioned, for house lots in the town, amounted to 993^. 

This distribution of land for house lots shows who the pro- 
prietors were at the time the town was incorporated, and the 
quantity of land granted to each proves their relative interest 
in the township ; and it exhibits another important fact, that 
every settlement at that day, was regarded as incomplete until 
they had a settled minister among them. The setting apart 
thirty acres for a blacksmith also shows their just appreciation 
of a mechanic in a new settlement. 

Having provided house lots for the proprietors, embracing 
about a thousand acres of their aecessible and valuable uj)- 
lands, they proceeded to assign to each proprietor a portion of 
the meadows, which at that time were held in high esteem, 
as affording at once grass and hay for their cattle. By the 
record of this division, we learn the names given to the re- 
spective meadows, many of which have come down to the 
present day, and will probably remain household words for 
centuries to come. We find the names of Angular Meadow, 



38 

Hawk Meadow, Handkerchief Meadow, Long Meadow, Rock 
Island Meadow, Castle Meadow, and the better preserved 
names of Flag Meadow, Fort Meadow, Stony Brook Meadow, 
Crane Meadow, Cedar Meadow, Stirrup Meadow, and Cold 
Harbor Meadow. 

Having assigned house lots to the proprietors, and made 
other grants to individuals, they adopted, at a meeting held on 
the 10th of February, 1662, the following order, which con- 
tains more evidence of their zeal than of their foresight : 

" It is ordered that all the lands situate and lying within this 
town, that are not already granted, from Mr. John Alcocke's 
line down to Stony Brook, and from thence up the Brook to 
Crane Meadow, and so along Stirrip Meadow Brook, and to be 
extended as the Brook runs to Assabeth River, and down the 
said River till it comes to the Indian Line ; and all the lands 
that were taken south of said Indian Line towards Sudbury, 
are and shall remain a perpetual Cow Common, for the use of 
the town, never to be allotted without the consent of all the 
inhabitants and proprietors thereof, at full meeting ; excepting 
fourscore acres of upland within the aforesaid tract of land, to 
accommodate some such desirable persons withall, as need may 
require, opportunity present, and the town accept of." 

It is exceedingly difficult for the first settlers in any new 
country, to ascertain the future wants of the inhabitants ; and 
hence provisions looking far into the future are generally un- 
wise. Dispositions of property in perpetuity, generally become 
sources of embarrassment and contention. So it proved in this 
case. The increasing wants of the inhabitants and the grow- 
ing demands for land, showed the propriety, if not the neces- 
sity, of dividing the Cow Commons. But it was hardly pos- 
sible to obtain the consent of every inhabitant and proprietor. 
Yet the wisdom of the measure became so apparent, that, after 
a considerable effort, a vote was obtained February 18, 1706, 
'• That the proprietors will divide the Cow Commons." This 
gave rise to many difficulties, as the vote was not unanimous ; 
and finally a Petition was preferred to the General Court, 
which, on full consideration of the subject, on the first of No- 
vember, 1709, " Resolved, That it be recommended to the 
Inhabitants and Selectmen of Marlborough, to make such im- 
provements of the reserved and common lands of said town, 



39 

as will be most encouraging and beneficial to the advancement 
and increase of the plantation." 

We have seen that as early as 1660, a tax was imposed to 
pay Rev. Mr. Brimsmead, who it appears was then laboring 
with them as their minister. In May, 1661, a similar vote 
was passed for the support of the ministry, of three pence half 
penny per acre upon house lots, and the same per pound upon 
cattle. In April of the same year, Obadiah Ward, Christopher 
Banister and Richard Barnes, agreed with the town " to build a 
frame for a minister's house every way like the frame that Mr. 
John Ruddocke built for himself, to be a girt house, 26 feet 
long, 18 feet wide, and 12J feet high between joints ; the studs 
standing at such a distance that a four foot and a half clap- 
board may reach three studs, and be of floor-joice, and four 
windows on the foreside, and two windows at the western, 
and two gables on the foreside, and eight feet square, with two 
small windows on the foreside of the gables. And they are to 
fell all the timber, and bring it in place, and do all that belongs 
to the frame, only the town is to help raise the aforesaid frame ; 
and all this work is to be done, and the frame raised, within a 
fortnight after Michael tyde ; and this being done, the town of 
Marlborough doth promise and engage to pay to them the sum 
of fifteen pounds in corn, within fourteen days after the house 
is raised — the one half of it — and the other half sometime in 
March — the whole pay to be one-third in wheat and one-third 
in rye, and the other third in Indian corn ; the half in wheat 
and rye is to be paid fourteen days after the house is up, and 
the half in rye and Indian corn sometime in March ; wheat at 
four shillings and sixpence a bushel, rye at four shillings a 
bushel, and Indian corn at tln*ee shillings a bushel ; to be paid 
at Sudbury, between Peter King's and Sarjent Wood's house 
in the streete." 

This house appears to have been completed in due season, 
and at a meeting of the inhabitants, held on the 3d day of No- 
vember, 1662, it was voted, " That Mr. William Brimsmead, 
Minister, shall have the frame and the lot it stands upon, 
which was appointed for a Minister in this town, with all the 
accommodations thereunto belonging, to be his and his heirs 
and assigns forever." This house stood not far from the first 
Meeting-House on the south-west side of the Indian Planting 



40 

Field ; and was probably a good specimen of what was then 
deemed to be the first style of architecture for a gentleman's 
mansion. It was built after the fashion of the house of Mr. 
Ruddocke, who appears to have been one of the wealthiest and 
most learned men in the place, and who was for several years 
intrusted with the Records of the Town. The house of Mr. 
Brimsmead was set on fire by the Indians in King Philip's 
War, and was consumed at the time the Meeting-House was 
burnt. 

Having provided a house for the minister, their minds 
would naturally turn upon a House in which he should dis- 
pense to them the word of life. Accordingly, at the same 
meeting, a tax of twelve pence per acre on their house lots was 
imposed, for the purpose of erecting a House of Public Wor- 
ship. The House thus provided for, and which was burnt by 
the Indians in 1676, stood on the Old Common, near the newly 
erected High School House, and within the limits of the Indian 
Planting Field, which was one source of hostile feeling on the 
part of the Indians. The site was subsequently purchased of 
an Indian, whose title to the soil was probably disputed by 
his brethren of the Ockoocangansett Plantation. 

The Deed of Anamaks appears to be full and perfect, and 
such as would pass the land, if the rightful fee was in him. 

" Marlborough, the 4th of April, 1663. Know all men by 
these presents, That I, Anamaks, Indian of Whipsuppenicke, for 
divers reasons and considerations, have given, granted, bargain- 
ed and sold unto John Ruddocke and John Howe, of the town 
of Marlborough, in the County of Middlesex, New England, to 
the proper use and behoof of the said town of Marlborough, the 
land y' the Meeting-House of the said town now stands on, 
and also the land from the highway on the foreside of the 
Meeting-House, and so on a square ten feet round about the 
said Meeting-House. I say I have sold the same unto the 
aforesaid John Ruddocke and John Howe, for the proper and 
only use and behoof of the inhabitants or proprietors of the 
said town of Marlborough, to have and to hold, to them the 
aforesaid town and proprietors thereof, and to their heirs, execu- 
tors, administrators and assigns, to their only use and behoof 
forever. And I do hereby bind myself, my heirs, executors and 



41 

administrators, to give them, and that they shall have full and 
quiet })ossession of the aforementioned land forever ; and I do 
hereby free them also, y^ aforesaid town of Marlborough and 
the proprietors and inhabitants thereof, from any claims, de- 
mand, or molestation of any man, woman or child whatsoever, 
that shall disturb them in or eject them out of the free, full or 
peaceable enjoyment and possession thereof, from the day and 
date hereof, and so forever, as witness my hand." 

This land, with the addition of a small tract purchased of 
Daniel, Samuel, and Nathaniel Gookin. sons of Gen. Daniel 
Gookin, of Cambridge, in 1688, constitutes what was the old 
Common — the whole of which did not come into full possession 
of the town till 1706, when the last parcel was purchased by 
Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, " for the use of the town, 
to set a Meeting-House on." 

The to\vn, after its incorporation, was organized by choosing 
Edmund Rice, William Ward, John Ruddocke, John Howe, 
Thomas King, Solomon Johnson and Thomas Goodnow, Se- 
lectmen; and John Ruddocke, Clerk. They then proceeded 
to attend to the municipal affairs of the town. It was provided 
that swine should be rung and yoked, and cattle should be pro- 
vided with a keeper ; and to show that they were in earnest in 
this by-law, they fixed a penalty of three pence on each swine, 
and six pence on each horned animal which shall be found at 
large, in violation of said provisions. They also provided that 
every man should have his fences properly made up and finish- 
ed by the 15th of April, under the penalty of twelve pence a 
rod for every rod that shall be found unmade or insufficiently 
made after that day. 

They also applied themselves to the subject of public travel, 
and laid out diverse roads for the convenience of the inhabi- 
tants, with a width of four rods — an example which might be 
safely copied by their descendants at the present day. They 
also provided for a County road to Sudbury, and contracted for 
the building of a bridge over Sudbury River, for "horse and 
man and laden carts to pass over at all times." That their fos- 
tering care extended to the health and comfort of brute animals, 
may be seen by the following vote passed in 1663. " It is 
ordered that no person shall lay or put any fflax or hemp into 



42 

any pond or brooke within this town, where cattle use to drink, 
on penalty of paying to the town's use twenty shillings for every 
offense ; and whosoever hath now any fflax or hemp in any 
pond or brooke as aforesaid, shall cause the same to be taken 
out within four and twenty hours after the date hereof, on 
penalty of paying the said sum." 

These votes of the early settlers were a solemn reality, and 
whoever attempted to disregard or evade them, was made to 
feel the weight of the penalty and to acknowledge the supre- 
macy of the law. No one subject of police regulation gave 
them more perplexity than that of restraining the bristly herd. 
We have already seen that they early provided that swine 
should be yoked and rung. But such was the perverseness of 
the swinish herd, or their owners, that within two years, it was 
found necessary to legislate further upon the subject. The 
penalty of three 'pence per head, on each swine unrung and un- 
yoked, proving insufficient, " It was ordered that all the swine 
found going at large within the town shall be sufficiently yoked 
and rung, at or before the 14th of April, on penalty of six pence 
per yoke and six pence per ring, that shall be found wanting ; 
which sum shall be paid by the owner of such swine." And 
to prevent any evasion of this order, or to pass off any thing as 
a yoke which was insufficient, they further ordered, " That the 
part of the yoke y' goes under the throat is to be so long as the 
swine is high, and those parts of the yoke that goes up by both 
sides of the necke, is to be so long as will rise two hand fulls 
above y* uppermost part of y^ swine's necke." 

After the first division of land, there appears to have been 
but little addition to the inhabitants for several years. Abraham 
Williams was admitted as a proprietor in 1663, and John 
W^oods, the same year, and Capt. Wheeler about the same 
time. There were, however, some families added by the mar- 
riage or settling in town of some of the sons of the original 
proprietors. 

It would be interesting, were it practicable, to give the loca- 
tion of the first settlers. But it is hardly possible. Most of 
the proprietors, by the different divisions, had lots in different 
parts of the town ; and it is highly probable that the same indi- 
vidual might reside in different places at different times. There 
was a general spirit of land speculation among the inhabitants, 



43 

and a good deal of the real estate changed hands. Moreover, it 
is certain that several of the early settlers had adult sons, when 
they came to town, and these took up their abode in the differ- 
ent parts of the township. As the original house lots were 
not laid out by metes and bounds, and the only description we 
have on record is little more than this — that A. 's lot was bound- 
ed on the west by B.'s, and B.'s was bounded on the east by 
A.'s, and that C.'s lot was adjoining F.'s, and bounded else- 
where by undivided land — we have no certain guide in fixing 
the locality of many of the early inhabitants. 

It seems, however, to be conceded, that John Howe was the 
first white inhabitant who settled in the town. He probably 
came to the place as early as 1657 or '58, and built him a cabin 
a little east of the Indian planting field, about one-third of a 
mile north-easterly of Spring Hill Meeting-House, where the 
late Edward Rice resided. Though his habitation was in the 
immediate vicinity of the native tribe of Indians, he succeeded 
in securing not only their friendship, but their entire confidence 
and esteem. This place was in possession of his descendants 
for several generations. 

Edmund Rice is supposed to have resided near where the 
present Town Hall stands. 

William Ward's homestead was south-westerly of the 
Meeting-House Common, on what is now known as the Hay- 
den place. 

John Woods, Sen., resided near the east village, on the road 
towards Southborough. 

John Maynard settled south-easterly of the Meeting-House, 
west of the house lot of John Woods, being near the place 
where Mr. Israel Howe now resides. 

Jonathan Johnson's house lot was directly south of the 
old Common, and was given to him on condition that he 
should reside in town a specified time, and do the smith-work 
for the people. 

John Ruddocke's place was north-westerly of the Meeting- 
House, on the spot where widow Joseph Howe now resides. 

Christopher Banister's house lot was on the north of 
John Ruddocke's, and bounded on the east by the Indian 
Line, being near the old John Gleason place. 



44 

John Barrett resided near Christopher Banister, His lot 
was bounded east by the Indian Line, and south by the 
house lot of Banister ; and was near the Barnes place. 

Abraham Howe resided near School-House No. 2, west 
of John Raddocke. 

Edward Rice located himself on the east of the present 
residence of widow Otis Russell, having Abraham Howe 
easterly of him. 

Thomas Rice resided north of the Pond, and probably not 
far from the present residence of Moses Howe. 

William Kerly probably resided at the lower end of 
South Street, on the south road to Boston. 

Richard Ward's house lot was west of the Indian Line, 
and probably near the old John Gleason place. 

Samuel Brigham resided three-fourths of a mile east of the 
East Village, near the old tan-yard of the late Capt. Daniel 
Brigham. 

Thomas Brigham resided in the westerly part of the town, 
on the place now known as the Warren Brigham place, on 
the south road to Northborough. 

John Bent took up his abode south of tHi Pond, on the 
place where the late Daniel Stevens resided. The farm was 
in the possession of the Bent family for several generations. 

Richard Barnes, who came to the country with the Bent 
family, located himself a little to the south of the Bent place, 
on the farm now owned by Dr. Barnes. This place has 
always remained in possession of some one of the family. 

Abraham Williams, who became a proprietor in 1663, 
located himself near the south-easterly end of the Pond, a site 
long known as the old Williams Tavern stand. 

Thomas Goodnow's original house was north of the Meet- 
ing-House, probably near the Solomon Barnes place, and was 
bounded on the east by the Indian Line. 

With one of the the most delightful and fertile plantations 
in the Colony, and a good supply of open meadows, yielding 
abundant crops prepared to their hands ; with a good gospel 
minister, and whatever else is necessary to make any settle- 
ment prosperous, we might reasonably suppose that they would 



45 

be contented and happy. But alas for the infirmities of human 
nature ! Divisions arose and difficulties multiplied among 
them. Councils were called ; the General Court was involved ; 
but all these means for a time proved unavailing. In the 
absence of full Town and Church Records, the latter being 
irrecoverably lost, we are unable to state fully the causes of this 
alienation, or to decide who were in fault. Neither are we in 
possession of facts which will enable us to state all the elibrts 
that were made to bring about an adjustment of these unhappy 
difficulties. By the Records of the General Court, and by 
papers preserved in the Archives of the State, we are enabled 
to glean some information concerning the affairs of that period. 

We have seen that in 1660 and 1662, the people of the place 
were attached to Mr. Brimsmead, and seemed happy under his 
ministry. They had liberally erected him a dwelling, and 
reared a house in which to meet him in their weekly worship. 
But in 1664 there appears to have been a general ferment in the 
town, by which their ecclesiastical as well as civil relations, 
were disturbed. The policy of the proprietors, from the first, 
appears to have been marked by some degree of stringency. 
Thus in September, 1659, they declare that all persons who 
do not perfect their house lots, and pay twenty shillings by the 
22d of March following, shall forfeit the title to their lands, 
and all rights in the plantation ; and in their grants for taxes, 
they annex the same penalty for non-payment, and give but a 
brief period for the payment of these rates. The natural scar- 
city of money, in every new settlement, should have inducpd a 
lenient policy. But as some, perhaps from necessity, failed to 
meet these demands within the time specified, the penalty of 
forfeiture thus incurred, was attempted to be enforced. But the 
delinquents petitioned the General Coiu-t, which sent out a 
committee to inquire into the facts of the case. This commit- 
tee reported in 1663, that in all such cases of forfeiture, the 
town should pay for all betterments which had been made on 
the forfeited estates ; and that henceforth " no town act passe, 
but in some publicke towne Meeting orderly called, and only 
by such as are by lawe enabled so to doe ; " — which Report was 
accepted by the Court. 

This fair and equitable order, which should have been satis- 
factory to all parties, proved but the signal for further strife. 
7 



46 

Petition after petition was presented to the General Court, and 
committee after committee was appointed to hear and adjust 
their difficulties. 

In 1664, seventeen * of the inhabitants of the town respect- 
fully ask the General Court to appoint a committee, with full 
power to hear and settle all their difficulties. They declare 
that their differences are such as render them incapable of 
caiTying on their affairs. They allege that these difficulties are 
of long standing, and admit, probably with some degree of 
truth, that these troubles have arisen " partly from our own 
corruption, and the temptations of Satan, hindering their own 
good feelings in matters both civil and ecclesiastical, which 
have been and are very uncomfortable to them and their 
friends." 

This application, apparently reasonable in itself, drew forth a 
remonstrance, signed by about an equal number of inhabitants,! 
who deny that there is any considerable difficulty, and declare 
that they " never went about to destroy the ToAvn Book, but 
only to rectify what was amis in it." They also declare that 
they never went about to "root out their minister." They 
allege that, in point of "gravity," they are "able to balance or 
overbalance " the petitioners ; that they pay nearly twice as 
much as the petitioners towards civil and ecclesiastical institu- 
tions ; and conclude by saying, " We are willing, with our per- 
sons and estates, to uphold the Authority of the Country, and 
do therefore desire the liberty of the law which gives towns 
power to transact their own affairs.^' 

The General Court, however, more desirous of having these 
difficulties settled than some of the inhabitants of the town, 
appointed a committee to adjust them. But after considerable 
delay, the committee, or at least a part of them, were dis- 

* The petitioners in this case were, William Ward, Andrew Belcher, Chris- 
topher Banister, Abraham "Williams, Samuel Ward, John Ruddocke, John 
Woods, Sen., Solomon Johnson, Thomas Goodnow, Obadiah Ward, William 
Kerly, John Johnson, Thomas Barnes, Abraham Howe, Nathaniel Johnson, 
John Woods, Jr., and John Barnes, 

t The citizens who opposed the appointment of a Committee were Thomas 
King, John Howe, Samuel Rice, Joseph Rice, John Barrett, Thomas Brigham, 
John Brigham, John Newton, Richard Barnes, Thomas Barrett, John Rediat, 
Richard Newton, Edmund Rice, Peter Bent, John Rutter, Thomas Rice, John 
Maynard, and John Bellows. 



47 

charged, and others were appointed in their stead ; and after 
about ten years, a Report was made and accepted by the 
Court, Under date of May 27, 1674, we find on the Records 
the following entry, which appears to have been the final 
result, after all other expedients had failed. 

" The Return of the Committee appointed for Marlborough, 
humbly showeth : 

" That according to our best skill, we have attended the ser- 
vice of that place, and the promotion of the settlement thereof. 
In pursuance of the fatherly care of this Court for their 
Avelfare, several joiu-nies we have made to them, and much 
time we have spent in hearing and discussing matters of differ- 
ence and difficulties among them ; and the result of all which 
is now mostly contained in the New Town Book, which we 
have caused to be finished, wherein not only their fundamental 
orders and grants are recorded, but also the particular stating 
and bounding of all those lands that are already laid out to the 
several inhabitants there. This New Town Book, as it now 
stands under the hands of Mr. John Green, we have by our 
order publicly approved, enstamping upon it what authority is 
with us to convey, humbly representing to this honored Court, 
that their acceptance and confirmation thereof, will be in our 
apprehensions, a competent way, and (as now circumstanced) 
the likeliest way for the attainment of the peace of that place, 
and a foundation of future good to them, which we leave to 
your Wisdom's consideration and determination. 

" And remain, your humble servants, 

«' LYMAN \\'ILLARD, 
"WM. STOUGHTON, 
"HUGH MASON." 

" The Court thankfully accepts of the labor and pains of this 
Committee, and do in answer to this return, allow and confirm 
the Town Book by them finished and stated as above — which 
Town Book shall from henceforth be the authentic record of 
the Town of Marlborough, as to the several particulars therein 
contained and conducted, — each inhabitant and person con- 
cerned, being required to take notice thereof, and yield obedi- 
ence accordingly." 



48 

A Report thus full and explicit, covering apparently the 
whole ground of the long and bitter contest about the correct- 
ness of their Records, and the consequent title to a great part 
of their respective lands ; heartily approved and endorsed as it 
was by the Court itself — the supreme power in this case — we 
might suppose would be the end of all strife. But as soon as 
this Report and the Order of the Court thereon, were promul- 
gated, Thomas King, who appears to have been fond of the 
bitter waters of strife, together with other inhabitants of the 
town, preferred another petition, reflecting upon this Commit- 
tee, and demanding another hearing. 

The Court passed upon this petition May 12, 1675, and fixed 
a time for another hearing. But owing, probably, to the Indian 
war which immediately ensued, and broke up, temporarily, the 
settlement, the parties, it would seem, did not appear to prose- 
cute their case. But true to that instinct which leads " from 
battles won to new succeeding strife." as soon as they had rid 
themselves of their savage foe, they renewed the quarrel among 
themselves, and the Court appointed Thomas Danforth, Deputy 
Governor Joseph Dudley, Esq., Capt. Lawrence Hammond, 
Capt. Daniel Fisher, and Capt. Thomas Brattle, to repair to the 
place, to hear the complaints, and ^^ finally and authoritatively 
to determine and settle all matters of difference among them." 

On the 9th of October, 1679, the Committee made their 
Report, in which they find some persons " justly blamable for 
their turbulently opposing the order of the former Committee." 
They ordered that certain portions of Assabet Meadow should 
be divided in a specified way ; in relation to the supporting of 
the ministry, they declare " that the allowance made to Rev. 
Mr. Brimsmead is much short of his deserts, and of what is 
needful for an honorable maintenance, and therefore advise to 
an amendment of that matter. And finally, with reference to 
the Book of Records of the Town, we do order that the same 
be delivered to the Selectmen for the time being ; and the 
Selectmen are ordered to take care that the Acts of the former 
Committees, together with this writing, be fairly entered into 
the above said book." This Report was signed by Thomas 
Danforth, Joseph Dudley, Thomas Brattle and Lawrence Ham- 
mond, and was approved and confirmed by the Court. 

While this long and bitter controversy was carried on in 



49 

relation to their temporal affairs, and especially in reference to 
their land, which in all new countries is the all-absorbing 
theme, their ecclesiastical affairs were neglected and somewhat 
embroiled. As early as 1664, when the contest commenced 
touching their records and their lands, we find their religious 
concerns so closely connected with the civil, that the estrange- 
ment extended to both ; and while Legislative Committees 
were invoked to restore quiet in the town. Ecclesiastical Coun- 
cils were called to preserve harmony in the parish. We have 
seen that provision was made for a Minister and a Meeting- 
house in 1662, and that such was their attachment to their 
Minister, that they erected him a house ; but within two years 
from that time, the difficulties which grew out of their secular 
affairs, extended to their religious, and prevented not only their 
growth in grace, but their enjoyment of the outward ordinances 
of religion. In 1664, John Howe, Sen., Richard Newton, 
John Rediat, Edward Rice, Thomas Rice, Peter Bent, Thomas 
King, Samuel Rice, and Joseph Rice petitioned the Magistrates 
for permission to establish a church — setting forth that their 
distance from the church at Sudbury, of which they were 
members, rendered it inconvenient to go there to enjoy church 
privileges ; that there were several aged sisters residing in 
Marlborough, who were almost entirely deprived of the privi- 
leges of communion ; and that there were others in town who 
would gladly unite with the church, if one were established 
in the place. 

But the same antagonism which appeared in their secular 
affairs, showed itself here also ; and crimination and recrimina- 
tion were permitted to prevail, to the regret and grief of their 
spii'itual guide. At length a Council was called, consisting 
of Rev. Messrs. John Sherman, Jonathan Mitchell, Edward 
Brown, and Joseph Rolandson, to hear the case and recommend 
such measures as they might deem for the best interest of the 
Redeemer's cause, and for the peace and harmony of the 
brethren. After a full hearing of the parties, the Council 
expressed their regret at the unhappy state of things existing 
among the people, but spoke in flattering terms of Rev. Mr. 
Brimsmead, who had labored with them from the first, and to 
whom they were all attached until these unpleasant differences 
had arisen. They also recommended the appointment of a 



50 

committee, selected from the people themselves, to devise 
measures for the peace and harmony of the Society. The 
Comicil close their Report by the following salutary advice. 

" After so long a time of troublesome difficulties, wherein 
hath not been wanting both sin and affliction on all hands ; it 
will be meet and serviceable to be much with humiliation 
before God, and to spend some day, or days that may be, in 
public prayer ; after which, and after their spirits are somewhat 
sweetened and satisfied mutually, it may be meet without too 
long delay to gather a church here — it being done according 
to approved order, with the presence and approbation of the 
messengers of the churches." 

About the time of this controversy, Mr. Brimsmead, who had 
labored with them from their first organization, probably dis- 
heartened by their distracted state, left the place, and preached 
for a time in Plymouth, where he was invited to settle, but de- 
clined the call. He subsequently returned to Marlborough, 
where he was settled, October 3, 1666, with a salary of forty 
pounds. A church was instituted, according to the custom of 
the times, on the day of the ordination ; and thus ended the 
unhappy controversy, and the church enjoyed quiet for about 
thirty-five years, 

Mr. Brimsmead was a native of Dorchester, and a son of 
William Brimsmead, of that town. He was educated at Har- 
vard College, but never took his degree. In consequence of 
the college term being lengthened from three to four years, the 
class to which he belonged did not graduate till 1648 ; but he, 
with sixteen others, left in 1647. Mr. Brimsmead is represented 
as being a good scholar, and a man of ability. He preached 
the Election Sermon in 1681 — a distinction which shows the 
high estimation in which he was held by the leading men of 
the Colony. The sermon was printed. The clergy held him 
in high estimation ; and he was one of those ministers whom 
the magistrates often consulted in times of difficulty and danger. 
Prince, in enumerating the authorities which he consulted in 
preparing his Annals, mentions a journal in Latin kept by Mr. 
Brimsmead, from 1665 to 1695, Whether this journal related 
to secular events, as well as religious, we are not informed. 
No journal of his, covering the whole of that period, is known 
to be in existence at this time. There is, however, a manu- 



51 

script journal in Latin, kept by him from 1682 to 1695, in which 
he has carefully noted his public labors on the Sabbath, and on 
days of Public Thanksgiving and Fasting ; giving the subject 
on which he preached, and the book, chapter and verse, where 
his text may be found ; and sometimes a brief statement of the 
positions taken in his discourses. He also notes, in the same 
manner, the discourses he delivered at the houses of his princi- 
pal parishioners ; for it appears that he did not confine his labors 
to the Sabbath, nor his preaching to the house of God. This 
journal also contains a few notices of occurring events, such as 
the choice of deacons, admissions to the church, and burials. 
The manuscript, which is in the possession of the Massachusetts 
Historical Society, is very handsomely written ; and though the 
great body of it is in Latin, he frequently cites texts in the 
Greek and Hebrew characters, written with great beauty and 
distinctness. This may have been the manuscript referred to 
by Prince. If so, it was probably in two volnmes ; the one 
from 1682 to 1695, being the second, and perfect in itself. 

Mr. Brimsmead was never married ; and tradition says that 
he uniformly refused to baptize children which were so irrever- 
ent as to be born on the Sabbath.* During the last part of his 
life, he was in feeble health, and miable to perform his pastoral 
duties without assistance. He died on Commencement morn- 
ing, July 3, 1701, aged about seventy-six years. He was buried 
in the old grave-yard, and an unlettered stone still remains 
to mark his resting-place. 

Mr. Brimsmead was an able and faithful minister, and did 
much towards building up the town and the church. In the 
days of those bitter controversies, when brother was arrayed 
against brother, and sister estranged from sister, it was a great 
blessing to the people to have one kind counsellor to whom 
they could all apply with confidence — one spiritual guide whose 
ardent desire was to lead them in the paths of peace and right- 
eousness. Such a counsellor and guide, they found in their 
devoted minister. In those early days, before the elements of 
society were properly combined, and the individual will had 

* Mr. Brimsmead was not alone in this singular practice. "Mr. Loring, of 
Sudbury," says Mr. Field, "followed the same custom until a pair of twins 
were born to him on the Sabbath ; when his opinions seem to have met with a 
change on this subject, and all were permitted to receive the ordinance." 



52 

learned to submit in any considerable degree to the public voice, 
the influence of the clergy was great, and highly salutary. 
Though the passions of men were strong, and the events of the 
times were calculated to draw out all the energies of the human 
mind, and the temptation was great to run into selfishness and 
insubordination ; nothing but the religious element, which our 
fathers had fondly cherished, could have restrained the passions 
of the people, and preserved the order and peace of the com- 
munity. 

This religious element naturally gravitated towards the 
clergy, and so gave them a controlling influence in the com- 
munity. There might be, and probably was, some superstition 
mingled with this respect for the minister ; but after all it must 
be admitted, that this feeling of reverence exerted a happy 
influence, and prevented evils of a more dangerous character. 
And though the minister himself might in some cases abuse the 
confidence reposed in him, and become arbitrary and overbear- 
ing, these cases were comparatively rare. Whoever, therefore, 
faithfully studies the history of this Commonwealth, and con- 
siders carefully the causes which have made us an intelligent 
and orderly, a moral and prosperous people, must admit that the 
influence of the ministers of religion has been highly salutary. 
This is true throughout the Colony, and was particularly so 
in Marlborough, under Mr. Brimsmead and his successor. 



CHAPTER II. 

THE INDIAN PLANTATION. 

The Indian Grant — Planting Field enlarged — Indians peaceable — Eliot 
preaches to them and translates the Bible into Indian — Indian Churches 
— Praying Indian Towns — Description of Ockoocangansett — Proposed 
School — Deed to Gookin — Burial Place and Indian Belies — Indians dis- 
appear by the order of Providence — Should be treated kindly — Massachu- 
setts policy towards them just and benevolent. 

The Plantation of Ockoocangansett, from its position, is so 
immediately connected with Marlborough, that no history of 
the town could be perfect without a full notice of the Indian 
possessions. The Indians in this portion of the Colony had, 
as early as 1643, put themselves under the protection of the 
General Court, and had the assurtuice that they should enjoy 
the lands in their actual possession, and be protected in their 
rights. The Indians at Marlborough were a branch of the 
Natick and Wamesit tribes, whose principal possession was 
upon the Merrimack, near its confluence with the Sudbury or 
Concord River — the site of the present city of Lowell. Their 
settlement at Marlborough was commenced early, probably 
before the English landed at Charlestown, or the Massachusetts 
Colony was organized. Their " Planting Field " on the hill 
near the old Meeting-House Common, appears to have been 
cultivated for a considerable period before the English settle- 
ment was made ; for the English, on taking possession of their 
grant, found not only Indian corn-fields, but Indian apple- 
orchards, in a bearing state, on the neighboring hill. 

It has been shown, in the preceding chapter, that the Indian 
grant was prior to the grant to the Sudbury men, and that the 
General Court, acting in good faith, made the latter subservient 
to the former. The grants apparently conflicting with each 
other, the Court appointed a Committee to examine the prem- 

8 



54 

ises, and lay out for the Indians a plantation of six thousand 
acres. The Committee having attended to that duty, sub- 
mitted the following Report, which appears to have been 
accepted by the Court: 

" Whipsiifferadge, June 19, 1659. 
" The Committee appointed by the General Court to lay out 
a plantation for the Indians, of six thousand acres, at the place 
above named, having given Mr. Eliot [who acted for the 
Indians not only as their spiritual teacher, but as a sort of tem- 
poral guardian] a meeting, and duly weighed all his excep- 
tions in behalf of the Indians ; first, what hath been formerly 
acted and returned to the General Court ; do judge meete in way 
of compliance, that the bounds of the Indian Plantation be en- 
larged unto the most westerly part of the fence, now standing 
on the west side of the Hill or Planting Field, called Ockoo- 
cangansett, and from thence be extended in a direct north line, 
untill they have their full quantity of six thousand acres ; the 
bounds of their plantation, in all other respects, wee judge 
meete that they stand as in the form returned ; and that their 
full compliment of meadow by the Court granted, may stand, 
and bee exactly measured out by an artist within the limits of 
the abovesaid lines, when the Indians, or any in their behalf, 
are willing to bee at the charges thereof: provided alwaies, that 
the Indians may have no power to make sale thereof, or of any 
part of their abovesaid lands, otherwise than by the consent of 
the Hon*^ Court ; or when any shall be made or happen, the 
Plantation of the English there seated, may have the first 
tender of it from the Court ; which caution we rather insert, 
because not only a considerable part of the nearest and best 
planting land is hereby taken away from the English, (as we 
are informed,) but the nearest and best part of the meadow, by 
estimation about one hundred acres in one place, that this north 
line doth take away, which tendeth much to the detrimenting 
of the English Plantation, especially if the lands should be 
appropriated to any other use than the Indians proposed ; that 
is to say, for an Indian plantation, or for accommodating their 
plantation, they should be deprived thereof." This Report was 
signed by the Committee — Eleazer Lusher, Edward Jackson, 
Ephraim Child, and Thomas Danforth. 



55 

This grant of six thousand acres inckided the " Planting 
Field " on the Hill before spoken of, which was early cultivated 
by the Indians. It is impossible, at this day, to fix the exact 
location of this Indian grant. It commenced at the westerly 
side of the planting field. But how far that extended west, I 
am not able to determine with certainty. It included the 
Meeting-House Common, and extended easterly probably about 
to the present road from Spring Hill Meeting-House to Fel- 
tonville ; and as the whole quantity was only about one 
hundred and fifty or sixty acres, it could not have extended 
much farther west than the old Common, or perhaps to the 
small brook a few rods farther west. From this point the line 
between the Indian and English plantation ran north seven 
degrees west, and crossed the Assabet some half a mile east of 
Feltonville. From the northerly side of the Indian planting 
field, the Indian line ran due east three miles to the line of 
Sudbury, and embraced nearly all of the north-eastern section 
of the present town. This plantation, it will be seen, covered 
what is now an important and extensive portion of the present 
township. 

We may naturally suppose that the English settlement would 
feel some anxiety to possess a territory which seemed to pro- 
trude into the very centre of their plantation, and that the In- 
dians would look with jealousy iipon a new settlement whose 
territory bounded them on two sides, whose central village was 
in the immediate vicinity of their own, and whose population 
exceeded their own in numbers, wealth and enterprise. There 
was, therefore, something of envy and jealousy existing be- 
tween them from the first. And yet they lived together in 
peace, and nothing occurred for years to produce any thing like 
an open rupture. It is due to the early English settlers, to say 
that they generally respected the rights of the natives, and 
refrained from all those acts which might excite the ire of their 
uncivilized neighbors. 

On the other hand, these Indians were generally peaceable, 
and were disposed to live on good terms with the English. 
The fact that they had planting grounds, where they raised 
corn and cultivated fruit, shows that they were more advanced 
in civilization than most of the savage tribes ; and that they 
had been under the guardian care of the pious and devoted 



56 

Eliot, whose labors for the natives have justly given him the 
title of "Apostle to the Indians," accounts, in a good degree, 
for their sobriety of demeanor, and for the good order which 
reigned among them. 

Mr. Eliot, so distinguished for his devotion to the best interests 
of the red man, was born in England, 1604. He came to this 
country in 1631, and settled as a clergyman in Roxbury the 
year following. He early conceived the idea of civilizing and 
Christianizing the Indians, and commenced preaching to them 
in Newton, 1646. To prepare himself for that work, he learned 
their language ; in 1663, he translated the New Testament, and 
in 1665, the Old Testament into Indian, that the natives might 
be enabled to read the word of life in their own tongue. His 
Bible, thus translated, bore the title — " Mamusse Wunmeetu- 
panatamwe Up-Biblum God naneeswe Nukkone Testament 
kahwonk Wusku Testament." The longest word in it was — 
" Wutappesittukgussunnoohwehtunkquoh " — which signifies, 
" Kneeling down to him." 

He visited most of the Indian settlements, gained the confi- 
dence of the tribes, and became their spiritual guide, and their 
guardian in temporal affairs. He established churches, and 
instituted the ordinances of the gospel among them. The first 
Indian church was established at Natick, in 1660, when a con- 
siderable number united, and in the space of ten years the num- 
ber had increased to forty or fifty. There were many others 
among them, who attended public worship, read the Scriptures, 
and prayed in their families, but did not make a public profes- 
sion of religion. Their worship was conducted similarly to 
that of the Puritans. Gen. Gookin, who took a great interest 
in their welfare, and who frequently visited them in company 
with Mr. Eliot, thus describes their worship : 

" Upon the Lord's day, Fast days and Lecture days, the peo- 
ple assemble together at the sound of a drum — for bells they 
have none — twice a day, morning and afternoon on the Lord's 
day, and once on Lecture days ; when one of their teachers, if 
they have more than one, begins with solemn and affectionate 
prayer ; then, after a short pause, either himself or some other 
thereto appointed, readeth a chapter out of the Old or New 
Testament. At the conclusion, a psalm or part of a psalm, is 
appointed, rehearsed, and solemnly sung. Then the minister 



57 

catechises and prays before his sermon, and so preacheth from 
some text of Scripture ; then conchides with a prayer and a 
psalm, and the blessing is pronounced. 

" In these acts of worship, for I have been often present with 
them, they demean themselves visibly with reverence, attention, 
modesty, and solemnity ; the menkind sitting by themselves, 
and the womenkind by themselves, according to their age, 
quality, and degree, in a comely manner. I have no doubt, but 
am fully satisfied, according to the judgment of charity, that 
diverse of them do fear God, and are true believers. But yet 
I will not deny but that there may be hypocrites among them, 
that profess religion, and yet are not sound-hearted." 

Their teachers were generally chosen from among them- 
selves ; and they had among them a kind of municipal organi- 
zation, and elected their overseers, constable, and other officers, 
much after the manner of the English settlements. These 
Indians were generally known by the name of the '• Praying 
Indians." 

There were seven principal towns of these Praying Indians : 
Natick, now the town of that name ; Pakemiti, now Stoughton ; 
Ockoocangansett, now Marlborough ; fVamesit, now Lowell ; 
Hassanamisett, now Grafton ; Nashobah, now Littleton ; Ma- 
gunkook, now Hopkinton. 

As these praying towns were in the very midst of the English 
settlements, no doubt the labors of Eliot and Gookin contrib- 
uted much towards the preservation of peace between them and 
the English ; and though the Praying Indians may have aided 
their brethren in some degree in Philip's war, they would have 
been much more injiu'ious and dangerous to the whites, but for 
the religious instruction they had received. 

Gookin, the friend of the Indians, and the fellow-laborer with 
Eliot, in his history of the Praying Indians, thus describes the 
Plantation at Marlborough in 1674 : 

" Okommakamesitt, alias Marlborough, is situated about 
twelve miles N. N. E. from Hassanamisett, (Grafton,) and 
about thirty miles from Boston, westerly. This village con- 
tains about ten families, and consequently about fifty souls. 
The quantity of land appertained to it, is six thousand acres. 
It is much of it good land, and yieldeth a plenty of corn, being 
well husbanded. It is sufficiently stored with meadows, and 



58 

is well wooded and watered. It hath several good orchards 
upon it, planted by the Indians ; and is in itself a good planta- 
tion. This town doth join so near to the English of Marlbo- 
rough, that, as it was spoken of David in type, and our Lord 
Jesus Christ the antetype — under his shadow ye shall rejoice ; — 
but the Indians here do not rejoice under the Englishmen's 
shadow, who do so overtop them in number of people, stocks 
of cattle, &c,, that the Indians do not greatly flourish or delight 
in their station at present. Their Ruler here was Onomog, 
Avho is lately deceased, about two months since ; which is a 
great blow to the place. He was a pious and discreet man, 
and the very soul, as it were, of the place. Their teacher's 

name is . Here they observe the same decorum for 

religion and civil order, as is done in other towns. They have 
a constable and other officers, as the rest have." 

This description of the number and condition of the Indians, 
and their feelings toward the English, is given by an eye- 
witness, and one friendly to these children of the forest; and 
taken in connection with their conduct in King Philip's war, 
which followed immediately after, shows the measure of suc- 
cess which had attended the attempt to civilize and Chris- 
tianize the Indians. 

It was a favorite plan of Mr. Gookin, to establish schools in 
the praying Indian towns, as one of the best means of civilizing 
them, and bringing them into harmony with the English. To 
carry out this idea, he proposes to establish such an institution 
in Marlborough. 

" There is," says he, when treating upon the subject of 
Indian schools, ''an Indian village within twenty-eight or 
thirty miles of Boston, westward, upon the road to Connecticut, 
called Okommakamesitt, alias Marlborough, which is half way 
of most of the praying villages. This Indian plantation join- 
eth unto an English town called Marlborough, so that the 
English and Indian plantation bear the same name. In this 
plantation there is a piece of fertile land containing about one 
hundred and fifty acres, upon which the Indians have, not long 
since, lived, and planted several apple trees thereupon, which 
bear an abundance of fruit : but now the Indians have removed 
from it about a mile. This tract of land doth so embosom 
itself into the English town, that it is encompassed about with 



. 59 

it, except one way; and upon the edge of this land the English 
have placed their meeting-house, which is an argument to 
demonstrate that they look upon it as near the midst of their 
town, according to general computation and practice. This 
parcel of land, with the addition of twenty acres of the nearest 
meadow, and a wood lot of about fifty acres, is well worth two 
hundred pomids in money ; and yet the Indians will willingly 
devote it for this work, (education,) for it brings little or no 
profit to them, nor is it ever like to do ; because the English- 
men's cattle, &c., devour all in it, because it lies open and 
unfenced ; and while the Indians planted there, it was in a sort 
fenced by them ; yet by their improvidence and bad fences, 
they reaped little benefit in those times — and that was one 
cause of their removal. 

" Now what I propose is, that the parcel of land above ex- 
pressed be set apart for an Indian free school, and confirmed by 
an Act of the General Court of this Colony mito a corporation 
for the Indians for this end forever ; and that it be enfenced 
with a stone wall into two or three enclosures, for corn, pas- 
tures, &c.,and this will be done easily, because there arc stones 
enough at hand upon it ; and then to build a convenient house 
for a schoolmaster and his family — under the same roof may be 
a room for a school ; also to build some out-building for corn, 
hay, cattle, (fcc. The charge of all this will not amount to 
above two hundred pounds in money. This being done, the 
place will be fit to accommodate a schoolmaster and his family, 
without any other salary but the use of this farm. 

" Moreover, it is very probable that the English people of 
Marlborough will gladly and readily send their children to the 
same school, and pay the schoolmaster for them ; which will 
better his maintenance ; for they have no school in that place 
at present ; in which regard I have heard some of the most 
prudent of them lament. But it being chargeable to raise a 
school and maintain a schoolmaster for twenty or thirty chil- 
dren, the inhabitants are backward to do it, until they are 
compelled by the law, which requires every village of fifty 
families to provide a school to teach the English tongue and to 
write ; but the people of Marlborough wanting a few families, 
do take that low advantage to ease their purses of this common 
charge. But if the school herein proposed is set up, it will be 



60 

their true interest to put their children to it, being the most 
thrifty and facile way they can take." 

This plan of an Indian school, though conceived in the spirit 
of benevolence, and being one which should commend itself to 
the good sense of an intelligent community, as one of the 
wisest means of civilizing the Indians, and so improving their 
condition, was never carried into effect. The war with King 
Philip, which commenced the following year, and which for a 
time broke up the English settlement at Marlborough, would, 
in the absence of all other causes, have defeated the measure. 

The war, which had scattered the English settlement tempo- 
rarily, proved still more disastrous to the Indians. And though 
the Marlborough Indians did not, perhaps, take any active 
measures against the whites, the suspicion which was excited, 
and the impediments which were thrown in their way, so far 
discouraged and disheartened them, that they manifested a 
willingness to sell that portion of land, which was nearly 
surrounded by the English settlement. Gookin himself be- 
came the purchaser. 

His deed, which bears date May 2, 1667, and having the 
signatures of several Indians, sets forth that they " being true 
proprietors, possessors, and improvers of the Indian lands call- 
ed Whipsufferadge, alias Okankonomett, adjoining to Marlbo- 
rough, in the Colony of Massachusetts in New England, for 
diverse considerations us thereto moving, especially the love 
and duty we owe to our honored Magistrate, Daniel Gookin, 
of Cambridge, Esq., who hath been a ruler to us above twenty 
years, do hereby freely and absolutely give, grant, and confirm 
unto him, the said Daniel Gookin, Esq., and his heirs forever, 
one parcel of land heretofore broken up, and being planted by 
us and our predecessors, called by the name of Okankanomesitt 
Hill, situated, lying, and being on the south side of our town- 
ship and plantation near Marlborough, containing about one 
hundred acres, more or less ; also ten acres of Fort Meadow, 
and ten in Long Meadow, with free liberty of commonage for 
wood, timber, and feeding of his cattle upon every common 
land within our township or plantation." 

This land came into the hands of Gookin's sons, who, as we 
have already seen, sold a portion of the same to the town of 
Marlborough, to enlarge their Meeting-House Common. 



61 

How long tlie Indians had occupied tliis planting field 
before the place was known to the white man, is uncertain. 
But here, probably, they had resided for some time ; and here 
they have left traces of their former presence, not only on 
the face of the earth, which they cultivated, but the plough 
not unfrequently brings to the surface some memorial of a 
rude age and an uncivilized people. On the northern declivity 
of this hill, they undoubtedly had a burial-place, where sleep 
the ashes of their fathers. Mr. William L. Howe, the present 
owner of a considerable portion of their former planting field, 
in excavating the earth in order to reset his wall, some sixty 
rods east of his residence, and nearly in front of the residence 
of the late Col. Ephraim Howe, discovered a quantity of beads 
which had probably been buried with the wearer, and bones 
which plainly indicated that this is the resting-place of the 
original lords of the soil. The beads were, as far as possible, 
collected, and are now in possession of Mr. Howe, who, we 
trust, will hand them down to his children, or place them in 
some safe depository, where they will remain for ages to come, 
to remind succeeding generations that the land we inhabit was 
once the home of a people that, in the providence of God, seem' 
destined to fade away in the presence of the white man. 

There is something melancholy in the reflection that the 
natives of these hills and plains have all disappeared, and that 
we live and thrive on the ruins of the past. But such is the 
order of Providence ! In the animal world, as in the vegetable, 
there is a constant succession ; and each animal, as well as 
plant, seems to rise from the ashes of its predecessor, and draw 
its nourishment from the mouldering remains of a preceding 
generation. This principle is so obvious, that the poet has well 
said, 

" All forms that perish other forms supply." 

Nor are nations or races of men exempt from this general law. 
The kingdom of Nineveh gave place to Babylon, Babylon to 
Persia, and Persia was conquered by Greece, which in its timi 
became subject to Rome. And why might we not expect a 
similar succession of nations on the western continent? But 
there is another and more vital principle, which applies to the 

9 



V 



62 

Aborigines of this country. They were a rude and unciviHzed 
race, Uving ahiiost in a state of nature upon the bounties of the 
earth, to whose products they contributed nothing by their 
labor. Such a race, by the order of Providence, is destined to 
give place to a people who, by their industry, can convert a 
wilderness into a fruitful field, and make the desert " rejoice 
and blossom as the rose." 

When God created man, he commanded him to cultivate the 
earth and subdue it ; and certainly a people who mingle their 
labors with the soil, all other things being equal, have a better 
title to a country, than one which simply roam through its 
forests in quest of game, or explore its rivers in search of food. 
It is well known that a given section of country is capable of 
supporting a vastly greater population of civilized than of savage 
men ; and if divine goodness is displayed in the creation of 
human beings, that arrangement of Providence is the most be- 
nevolent, which gives a comfortable support to the largest 
number of sentient beings. So far, therefore, as the adminis- 
tration of the Almighty is concerned, no one can reasonably 
regret that a barbarous, heathen nation, should give place to 
a civilized. Christian one ; or that the hunting-ground which 
could support a single tribe, should, by the arts and industry 
of civilization, be made to support a population ten times as 
numerous. 

Viewed therefore, on a broad and liberal scale, in the light of 
a rational philosophy, or a pure and elevated religion, the dis- 
appearance of the native tribes should fill us with rejoicing 
rather than with regret. As sympathetic beings, we naturally 
commiserate their fate, as we do the imbecility of old age, the 
sufferings which arise from sickness, and the grief from the 
loss of friends by death ; but, confiding in the wisdom of an 
over-ruling Providence, we should submit our will to that 
of the 'Judge of all the earth, who doeth right.' But this 
belief in the destiny of the Aborigines of the country, affords no 
justification, on our part, for acts of injustice or cruelty towards 
them. On the contrary, an expiring nation, like an expiring 
individual, is justly entitled to our sympathy and kind assist- 
ance. The belief that they are destined to perish, under the 
Divine administration, furnishes us with no more justification in 



63 

accelerating their doom, than the behef that any of onr friends 
were sick unto death, would justify us in adopting measures to 
hasten their departure. 

The faithful historian is not only bound to narrate the events 
as they actually occur, but to correct errors of opinion as well 
as errors of fact. And as the true objects of history are to cor- 
rect the faults and improve the morals of society, he is unfaith- 
ful to his trust who does not, on his historic page, present those 
moral phases of all subjects on which he treats, which are cal- 
culated to purify the heart, as well as enlighten the understand- 
ing. On this principle it seemed important to say a word on 
the great problem of Indian extinction. 

As a general thing, the Massachusetts Colony dealt fairly 
with the natives. In no case, so far as we are informed, were 
the Indians dispossessed of the land of which they were in 
actual possession ; and our Courts were open to them, at all 
times, to enforce their rights and title to their lands. There 
were, undoubtedly, cases of individual hardship — instances in 
which they were defrauded by certain artful and unprincipled 
men. But after they put themselves under the protection of 
the Colony, in 1643, they received not only the protection of 
the Government, but in most cases its kind and fostering care. 
The Court granted them lands adjoining their actual possessions, 
and frequently, as in the case of the Ockoocangansett Planta- 
tion, guarded them against any clandestine purchase, by requir- 
• ing the consent of the Court to legalize the sale. The purchase 
of this plantation, by the citizens of Marlborough, we shall have 
occasion to speak of hereafter. 

If we compare the treatment of the Indians in the Massa- 
chusetts Colony, with the treatment the tribes have since 
received at the hand of the Federal Government, we shall see 
that our fathers were more just and merciful than their sons ; 
and that the Colony of Massachusetts Bay had more regard for 
the rights of the natives of the forest, than the great nation of 
which we are a part. Massachusetts has ever exercised a guar- 
dian care for the Indians. Down to the present day, we provide 
for the education of the children of the Gay Head, Christian- 
town, Herring Pond, Chappequiddick, Marshpee, and other 
remnants of Indian tribes. We appoint guardians to look after 



64 

their property, if any they have, and make appropriations from 
our treasury to supply their temporal wants. So that, while we 
commiserate the fate of the expiring tribes on this continent, 
we can console ourselves with the fact, that Massachusetts has 
contributed her full share to smooth their pathway to the grave, 
and to make their last days comfortable and happy. 



CHAPTER III. 

KING PHILIP'S WAR. 

The Tribes submitted to the Colony — Philip plots the Destruction of the 
English — His Character — Marlborough prepares for the Conflict — Imme- 
diate Cause of the War — Philip defeated and flees to the Xipmucks — He 
attacks Brookfield, Hadley, Deerfield, Northampton and Springfield — The 
Narragansets join Philip — They are defeated in their Fortress — Lancaster 
attacked, and Mrs. Rolandson taken captive — Depredations at Marlbo- 
rough — Medfield burnt — Groton attacked — Attack upon Marlborough — 
Meeting-House burnt — Indians surprised by Lieut. Jacobs — Sudbury 
Burnt — Sudbury Fight — Death of Capt. Wadsworth and Brocklebank — 
Philip seeks aid of the Mohawks — Flees to Mount Hope — Death of 
Philip — Destructive Character of this War — Conduct of the Marlborough 
Indians — Carried away by Capt. Moseley — Evils of War overruled for 
Good. 

The most eventful period in the history of the Town, and 
indeed of the Colony, is that connected with the Narragansct, 
or, as it is more commonly called. King Philip's war. When 
the people of Sudbury petitioned for a grant of land eight miles 
west of them, and alleged that they were " straitened" for the 
want of room ; and when the proprietors of Marlborough, in 
1671, entertained the idea of enlarging their borders, they had 
no apprehension of danger from the savages. In fact, they 
had settled by the side of the Indians, and their oavu township 
nearly encircled a grant, older than their own, made to the red 
men, with whom they had lived for years in peace. They had 
no cause, therefore, for apprehension from neighbors thus (piiet 
and peaceable. 

Neither had they any ground for apprehending danger from 
Indians more remote. After the severe chastisement inflicted 
by the English upon the Pequots, in 1638, the tribes within 
Massachusetts Colony, and some tribes beyond her bounds, had 
voluntarily submitted to the Colony, and agreed to live on 
terms of peace and friendship. In 1643 and 1644, Pumham, 



66 

Sachem of Showomock, and Socononoco, Sachem of Pawtucket, 
south of Providence ; Passaconaway, Sachem of the Merri- 
macks, Cutshamekin and Squaw-Sachem of the Massachusetts, 
together with Nashacowam and Wassamagoin, two Sachems 
near the great hill of the west called Wachusett, had come in 
and submitted themselves to the Colony ; and in the very lan- 
guage of the treaty, " put themselves, their subjects, lands and 
estates under the government of Massachusetts." This cove- 
nant embraced all the territory from the Merrimack to Taunton 
river, and, as we have seen, extended into Rhode Island. This 
treaty was not only political and commercial, but, in its very 
terms, moral also. The Indians consented to adopt the great 
principles of the decalogue, and conform to the requirements 
of the moral law. The commandments were explained to 
them, and their assent was readily given. When they were 
told that they must not labor on the Sabbath, they answered in 
their simplicity, that they had but little work to do at any 
time, so they would readily comply with that requisition, and 
rest on that day. This treaty was ratified with due pomp 
and solemnity — the Chiefs making a present of wampum, and 
receiving suitable presents in return, closing with a good din- 
ner, and a cup of sack at their departure, so that they went 
on their way joyfully. 

But while the people of Marlborough were rejoicing in the 
prospects before them ; while they were dividing the lands 
they already possessed, and fondly anticipating the time when 
they should possess the lands of their Indian neighbors ; while 
they were building them houses, and planting them orchards ; 
while they were adopting municipal regulations for the better 
management of their affairs, and assembling in their own 
house of worship, with none to molest or make them afraid, 
Philip, the bold and daring Chief of the Wampanoags, was 
plotting the extermination of the English Settlements. With a 
sagacity which we cannot but admire, he plainly foresaw that 
if the English were permitted to multiply on these shores, the 
fate of the Native Tribes might be a question of time, but not 
of certainty ; and with a love of country which we must honor, 
even in a savage, he conceived the bold design of ridding his 
native land of what he considered its spoilers. 

Animated by these feelings, he exerted all his powers to 



67 

prepare for the deadly conflict. He enlisted most of the sub- 
ordinate tribes in his cause, and secretly secured the powerful 
Narragansets in his interest, though they were at the time the 
professed friends of the Colonists. With this fomiidable force, 
he spread devastation and dismay through the Colonies. 
Though circumstances beyond his control compelled him to 
commence the war before his plans were sufficiently matured, 
what he lacked in preparation was made up in energy of 
purpose and celerity of movement. The boldness of his de- 
signs, and the strategy with which he executed them ; his 
daring in the field, and the skill with which he eluded his 
pursuers, bear witness to his ability, and place him high in the 
list of military chieftains. 

Though this war was comparatively short, it was one of the 
most sanguinary and fearful the Colony had ever ex^ierienced. 
The hardships endured by the soldiers are unparalleled in our 
history. The devastation which was spread far and wide, the 
atrocities which were committed, the terror and dismay which 
pervaded the whole community, give a fearful interest to that 
war, and render it one of the most memorable in our annals. 
It was not a mere question of yielding or holding a certain 
amount of territory — not of vindicating some point of honor, 
or of redressing some known wrong. No — the issue involved 
considerations of a more vital character. It was a question of 
life or death to the feeble Colonies. 

Marlborough, being a frontier town, was greatly exposed to 
attacks from the Indians. Situated on what was denominated 
the Conftecticut road, and being the intermediate post between 
Boston and the settlements on Connecticut river, the Colony 
had regarded it as an important point, and had established a 
fort there before the breaking out of Philip's war ; and during 
the contest it was made a sort of depot for provisions and muni- 
tions of war. It was, for a time, the theatre of the war, and 
to use a military phrase, was made the base line of operations 
against the enemy in this quarter. A few soldiers were sta- 
tioned here by the Colony. Stockade defenses were thrown 
around some of the principal dwellings, and slight and feeble 
preparations were made for their protection. 

Foreseeing the approaching storm, the citizens of Marl- 
borough, headed by their minister, convened, on the first of 



68 

October, 16T5, to adopt such measures of defense as might be 
thought most expedient. At this meeting were present Rev. 
Mr. Brimsmead, Deacon Ward, Thomas King, Solomon John- 
son, Abraham Howe, John Howe, Sen., John Woods, Sen., 
Richard Newton, Abraham Williams, Thomas Rice, John 
Johnson, Samuel Rice, John Bellows, Nathaniel Johnson, John 
Woods, Jr., Joseph Newton, Thomas Barnes, Josiah Howe, 
John Maynard, John Rediat, John Fay, Moses Newton, Rich- 
ard Barnes, William Kerly, and James Taylor. They agreed 
that certain garrisons should be established and maintained, as 
follows : 

1. At William Kerly^s house there should be a garrison, and 
two soldiers allowed by the Government should be stationed 
there, and in case of danger, nine citizens should repair to the 
place. 

2. At JoJiJi JohnsoJi's house there should be nine soldiers and 
three of the citizens. 

3. At Deacon Ward^s house, three soldiers and six citizens, 
including three of his own family. 

4. At Sergeant Wood's house, two soldiers and six citizens. 

5. At Abraham Williams's house, three soldiers. 

6. At Joseph Rice''s house, three citizens. 

7. At Thomas Rice^s house, two soldiers and six citizens. 

8. At Feter Benfs house, three soldiers. 

These arrangements appear to have been made in concert 
with the Lieutenant commanding the garrison, who was to 
retain thirteen soldiers to defend his stores and the magazine. 

The soldiers distributed to guard the families were to be sup- 
ported by the families respectively. It appears by this distribu- 
tion that there were thirty-seven soldiers to guard nine or ten 
garrisons, and to protect, as far as practicable, three times that 
number of houses not specified. With these feeble prepara- 
tions, they awaited the bloody contest, resolved, like the rest of 
their fellow-citizens in the Colony, to do their duty and " quit 
themselves like men," trusting in the God of battles to give 
them strength, and enable them to resist, successfully, the 
attacks of their heathen enemies. 

The immediate cause of the war was the execution, by the 
English, of three Indians whom Philip had excited to murder 



69 

one Sausaman, an Indian missionary. Sausaman being friendly 
to the English, had informed them of Philip's designs for their 
extermination. The execution of these Indians roused the 
indignation of Philip, and though his plans were not matured, 
he immediately commenced hostilities. His first attack was 
upon the people of Swanzey, in Plymouth Colony, as they 
were returning home from public worship, on a day of humili- 
ation and prayer, under the apprehension of the approaching 
war. This was on the 24th of June, 1675. The English in 
that quarter immediately flew to arms. Philip, with his forces, 
left Mount Hope, and took refuge among the Narragansets, who 
were secretly in his interest ; but being at peace with the Eng- 
lish, were not prepared at that time to throw off the disguise. 
The Massachusetts and Plymouth forces marched into Rhode 
Island, but Philip retired to a swamp, where the English, not 
being able to attack him to advantage, resolved to starve him 
out ; but the wary chief contrived to escape with his bands, 
and so frustrated their design. 

He then fled to the Nipmucks, a tribe in the County of Wor- 
cester, who had already shown signs of hostility, but professed 
a willingness to treat with the English. Captain Hutchinson 
and Captain Wheeler were sent, with a small guard, to treat 
with them ; but the Indians, instigated by Philip, fired upon 
them from an ambush, killed eight of their men, and mortally 
wounded several others, among whom was Captain Hutchin- 
son.* The remainder of the English fled to Quaboag, (now 
Brookfield, ) and were hotly pursued by the Indians, who burnt 
every house in the place, except one in which the inhabitants 
had taken refuge. This house was surromided. For two days 
it resisted the attack, with the loss of but one person. At 
length the Indians, who had tried every expedient to fire the 
building, loaded a cart with flax and tow, and with long poles 
fastened together, pushed it while on fire against the house. 
Destruction seemed inevitable. The savages stood ready to 
destroy the first person that should open the door to escape. 
At this awful moment a torrent of rain descended, and extin- 

* Captain Hutchinson was carried to Marlborough, where he died. He was 
the first person buried in the old burying ground. The following inscription 
is upon a stone over his remains : ♦' Capt. Edward Hutchinson, aged 67 years, 
was shot by treacherous Indians, Aug. 2, 1675 ; died Aug. 19, 1675." 
10 



70 

guished the kindling flames. Major Willard coming to their 
relief, the Indians were dispersed. 

During the month of September, Philip and his allies fell 
upon Hadley, Deerfield and Northfield, on Connecticut river: 
and shortly after, Springfield was attacked, but timely rein- 
forcements saved the greater part of the town. In these suc- 
cessive attacks, many dwellings were burned, and many of the 
inhabitants were massacred. Capt. Lathrop, with about eighty 
young men, the flower of Essex County, fell into an ambus- 
cade, and seventy of his men were wantonly destroyed. This 
massacre was immediately revenged by the timely ari'ival of 
Captain Mosely, who attacked the Indians, killed ninety-six, 
wounded about forty more, and put the whole party to flight, 
losing himself but two men. 

The Narragansets at length threw off their disguise, and a 
large force was sent against them. They had taken refuge in 
a swamp in what is now South Kingston, where they had 
strongly fortified themselves. On the 19th of December, 1675, 
the English commenced their march through a deep snow to 
attack the enemy. The army arrived at the swamp about mid- 
day, where they discovered a few Indians, who immediately 
fled, and they followed them to their fortress, which stood on 
rising ground in the middle of the swamp. It was a work of 
great strength and labor, being composed of palisades, and sur- 
rounded by a hedge of about a rod in thickness. It had but 
one practicable entrance, which was over a log or tree four or 
five feet from the ground, and that aperture was guarded by a 
block-house. Falling providentially on that very part of the 
fort, the English captains entered at the head of their compa- 
nies. The Indians fought with desperation, and drove the 
assailants out of the fort. At this crisis, the English at the 
opposite side of the fort discovered a place destitute of palisades, 
through which they forced their way, and attacked the Indians 
in their rear ; and aided by the rest of the army, after a desper- 
ate conflict of about three hours, the English became masters 
of the place, and set fire to the wigwams. The" scene was 
truly awful. The smoke and blaze of six hundred wigwams 
rolled up to heaven, while the shouts of the victors mingled 
with the shrieks of women and children, the old and infirm 
perishing in the flames. The Indians in the fort were esti- 



71 

mated at four thousand ; of these, seven hundred warriors were 
killed, and three hundred more died of their wounds ; three 
hundred warriors were taken prisoners, and as many women 
and children. The rest, except such as were consumed in their 
wigwams, fled. The victory of the English was complete ; 
but it was purchased with blood. Six brave captains fell, 
eighty of their men were killed, or mortally wounded, and one 
hundred and fifty more were wounded and recovered. 

But complete as this victory Avas, the daring spirit of Philip 
was not subdued. Scarcely had the troops from Massachu- 
setts, who had made this bold and successful incursion into his 
dominion, returned to Boston and been disbanded, before the 
enemy appeared in their very midst. With almost incredible 
celerity, he threw himself upon the border settlements, and 
one after another was wrapped in flames. Small predatory 
parties lurked about almost every settlement, cutting off a 
laborer here and there, burning solitary houses, and destroying 
or carrying the families into captivity. 

But the war soon assumed a more formidable character. 
The Indians collected in large numbers, and fell upon the 
principal frontier towns ; and scarcely were the smouldering 
fires of one settlement extinguished, before the midnight gloom 
was lighted by the blaze of another. The troops which had 
driven Philip's forces from their stronghold in Rhode Island, 
on the 19th of December, had returned and were discharged 
about the first of February. On the 10th of that month, a 
party of Indians fell upon Lancaster, and burnt most of the 
houses that were not garrisoned ; and more than forty persons, 
an eighth of the whole population, were either killed on the 
spot, or carried into captivity ; — among the latter were Mrs. 
Rolandson, the wife of their worthy minister, and her children ; 
and had it not been for the timely arrival of the gallant Captain 
Wadsworth, with his company from Marlborough, the remaining 
inhabitants would probably have experienced a dreadful death, 
or a lingering captivity. 

The principal destruction at Lancaster was at the house of 
the minister. It was a garrisoned house, and was filled with 
soldiers and inhabitants, to the number of forty-two. The 
house was defended with determined bravery against a large 
force, for upwards of two hours, when the enemy succeeded in 



72 

setting it on fire. The inhabitants finding further resistance 
useless, were compelled to surrender, to avoid perishing in the 
flames. One man only escaped ; twelve were either put to 
death on the spot, or reserved for torture. Others were carried 
into captivity. Mrs. Rolandson was taken by a Narraganset 
Indian, and sold to Quamopin, a Sagamore who was connected 
with Philip by marriage ; their wives being sisters. Mrs. 
Rolandson was held in captivity several months, when she was 
redeemed by the Government lor £20. When the attack was 
made upon Lancaster, Mr. Rolandson, with one of his principal 
parishioners, was at Boston, soliciting a military force to defend 
the place. To this circumstance he owed his escape, and prob- 
ably his life. 

After the destruction of Lancaster, the Indians passed through 
Marlborough, where they committed some depredations, on the 
way to Medfield, which place they surprised, on the morning of 
the 21st of February. Though there were soldiers stationed 
there, so stealthy was the approach of the savages, that the 
troops afforded no protection. Entering the town under the 
cover of night, they dispersed themselves throughout the settle- 
ment, and at a concerted signal applied the torch to the dwell- 
ings a little before day-light ; and while the affrighted inhabi- 
tants were rushing from their burning habitations, they were 
fired upon by the Indians, who had secreted themselves near 
the respective houses. As soon as the alarm was given, and 
before the troops stationed there could be collected, the wily 
enemy had fled. About fifty houses were burned, and fifteen 
or sixteen persons were either killed or consumed in their 
dwellings. 

Soon after this, small parties were seen prowling about Gro- 
ton. On the 2d and 9th of March, several depredations were 
committed in that town ; one man was killed, and another was 
carried into captivity. But on the 13th of that month, they 
approached the place in larger numbers, and by stratagem suc- 
ceeded in drawing the armed men from their garrisons, when 
they attacked them both in front and rear. The Indians got 
possession of some of their garrisons, so that the people saved 
themselves only by seeking shelter in others. About fifty 
houses were burnt, two or three of the inhabitants were killed, 
and the settlement broken up. 



73 

Under the guidance of their distinguished leader, tlie Indians 
appeared almost to possess the attribute of omnipresence ; for 
while they were threatening one settlement, and calling public 
attention in that direction, the incendiary torch was applied in 
another quarter. Thus the whole community was kept in a 
constant state of alarm. Scarcely had the smoke ceased to 
ascend from the burning dwellings of Groton, when a large 
body of Indians were found prowling in the woods between 
Marlborough and Brookfield. Troops were immediately dis- 
patched from the towns, when the Indians fell back towards 
the valley of the Connecticut ; and though they were vigorously 
pursued, the main body could not be brought to action. Dis- 
appointed in not being able to chastise the enemy, the troops 
returned to Marlborough, where they learned from a spy who 
was taken, that the Indians meditated an immediate attack 
upon that town. The soldiers remained a few days, but no 
enemy appearing, they concluded that the design, if ever enter- 
tained, had been abandoned ; consequently they returned to 
their homes, to the great regret of the inhabitants, who still 
believed that the report of the prisoner was well founded. 
In this impression they were right, as the sequel too plainly 
showed. 

Within four days after the troops had been withdrawn, 
the arch enemy made his appearance. The 26th of March, 
1676, being the day for public worship, arrived. " No rude 
alarm of raging foes " disturbed the quiet of that Sabbath morn- 
ing. The people assembled at the house where prayer was 
wont to be made, and a fervent petition had been offered for 
their safety and protection. A hymn of praise had been sung. 
Their spiritual leader, the Rev. Mr. Brimsmead, commenced 
his sermon, and was dispensing to them the word of life, when 
he was interrupted by the appalling cry — " The Indians are 
upon us." The confusion and dismay which ensued, can be 
better imagined than described ! The assembly instantly broke 
up; and the people made for the neighboring garrison, where, 
with a single exception, they all arrived in safety, just in season 
to elude the savage foe. One of the worshipers,* (to his honor 
be it recorded.) less moved by fear than by humanity, seeing 

* Moses Newton, a son of Richard Newton, one of the thirteen original pro- 
prietors of the town. 



74 

an aged and infirm female who could not move rapidly from 
the scene of danger, resolved to rescue her from impending 
destruction, or perish in the attempt. In his noble effort he 
succeeded, and brought her safely to the garrison, though in so 
doing he received a ball in his elbow, from the effects of which 
he never fully recovered. 

Being secured in the gamson, they were able to defend 
themselves, but could afford no protection to their property, 
much of which was destroyed, or carried away. Thirteen of 
their dwellings, and eleven barns, were laid in ashes ; their 
fences thrown down ; their fruit-trees hacked and peeled ; 
their cattle killed or maimed ; so that their ravages were visible 
for many years. But what would be more distressing to our 
pious ancestors, than any other loss of mere property, was that 
of their meeting-house, and the house they had erected for their 
faithful minister — both of which shared in the general confla- 
gration. There is a common tradition, that the Indians set fire 
to Mr. Brimsmead's house, and that the flames communicated 
with the meeting-house which stood near by, and that that was 
the cause of its being burnt. This might have been the case ; 
but the Indians, engaged in a war of extermination, had no 
more regard for the white man's religion, than for the white 
man's life, which they were taking every measure to destroy. 
And it is possible, that the fact of this house being located upon 
the Indian planting field, which gave some offense to the 
Indians, might have been one cause of its destruction. 

After the destruction of most of their dwellings, many of the 
inhabitants left the place, and repaired to Watertown, Concord, 
and other towns less exposed ; as we shall have occasion to 
mention hereafter. 

Subsequent to this attack upon Marlborough, the Indians, 
about three hundred strong, who undoubtedly felt that they 
were masters of this region of country, retired to the woods 
not far distant, and encamped for the night. Lieut. Jacobs, of 
the garrison at Marlborough, conceived the bold design of sur- 
prising them in their camp. Accordingly, on the night of the 
27th, with a party of his men, and a portion of the citizens of 
the town, he attacked them when they were wrapped in pro- 
found slimiber, and killed and wounded about forty, without 
sustaining any loss himself. 



75 

The Indians seem to have resolved that this midnight 
assassination should not go unrequited. On the 17th of April, 
the largest number of Indians which had appeared in this 
neighborhood, attacked Sudbury, and before resistance could 
be made, set fire to several buildings, which were consumed. 
The inhabitants however rallied, and made a bold stand, and 
Avere soon joined by some soldiers from Watertown, under the 
lead of Capt. Hugh Mason. The Indians retreated over the 
bridge towards Marlborough,* and did no more damage that 
day. 

Capt. Wadsworth, a brave and experienced officer from Milton, 
who on a former occasion relieved Lancaster in the hour of her 
peril, marched with about fifty men from Boston, to strengthen 
the garrison at Marlborough ; and on his arrival there in the 
evening, he learned the fate of Sudbury. On his way to 
Marlborough he passed near where a portion of the Indians 
were concealed ; but they permitted him to move on, without 
showing themselves ; willing, no doubt, to be relieved from the 
presence of one they had so much reason to dread. When 
Capt. Wadsworth learned at Marlborough the particulars, as far 
as they were then known, of the attack that morning upon 
Sudbury, and that there was a party of Indians still lurking 
about the place, though he had marched all day and a part of 
the preceding night, he resolved to retm-n to the relief of the 
place. Giving his men but a brief period for rest and refresh- 
ment, and leaving some of them, who were nearly exhausted 
by the severe hardships they had already endured, accompa- 
nied by Capt. Brocklebank, then in command at Marlborough, 
with a portion of his men he commenced his march for 
Sudbury. On the morning of the 18th f of April, when they 

* The portion of Sudbury which was attacked, and where the houses were 
burnt, was east of the river, in what is now Way land. 

t There is considerable discrepancy with reference to the date of the Sudburj' 
Fight — some placing it on the ISth, and some on the 2Ist of April. Though no 
principle is involved, it is always desirable to be historically correct. There are 
very respectable authorities on each side. Those who contend for the 18th, 
allege that this is the date upon the Wadsworth Monument, at Sudbury, and 
that it follows the authority of President Wadsworth, of Harvard College, who 
was a son of Capt. Wadsworth, and who would be likely to have the best 
information on the subject, and the strongest inducement to state it correctly. 
Hubbard, the historian of the Indian wars, places it on the 18th. The Massa- 



76 

had arrived within about a mile and a half of the town, they 
came near where a body of about five hundred Indians had 
prepared an ambush behind the hills. From their hiding- 
place, they sent out a few of their party, who crossed the 
march of the English, and being discovered by them, affected 
to fly through fear, to decoy them into a pursuit. The strata- 
gem succeeded, and with great boldness the Indians began the 

chusetts Council communicate the fact of the Sudbury Fight to the Plymouth 
Colony in writing, on the 21st ; and considering that the battle lasted several 
hours, and that the men who sought shelter in the mill were not relieved till 
the afternoon, and that the Indians were left in possession of the field during 
the day, it is highly improbable, it is said, that the Council should receive the 
news and communicate it to Plymouth on the day of the fight, the Indians 
being in possession of the intervening country. 

Gov. Boutwell, in his Address at Sudbury, places it on the 18th, and says it 
could not have been as late as the 21st. Rev. Peter Hobart, of Hingham, has 
this entry in his journal: "April 18, 1676, Sudbury burnt, and Capt. Wads- 
worth and Capt. Brocklebank slain." Hutchinson, in his History, Vol. 1, p. 
305, says; "April 20, 1676, news came to Boston of the loss of Capt. Wads- 
worth and fifty of his men, going to relieve Sudbury, attacked by the enemy." 
This statement is highly probable ; as the Indians were in Sudbury and vicinity 
in great force, they would naturally intercept the communication, so that the 
events of the 18th would not be likely to reach Boston before the 20th. Far- 
mer says: "Capt. Wadsworth, freeman, 1668, killed by the Indians, April 18, 
1676." Judge Sewall's Almanack has it on the 18th. Willard fixes it on the 
18th ; with which Ward concurs. 

On the other hand. Savage, whose authority stands high, places it on the 
21st. Drake, who has investigated the subject pretty fully, thinks it was on 
the 21st. And in support of this position, he cites Gookin, who says he was 
attending church at Charlestown, on Lecture- day, when the news arrived ; and 
Mr. Drake asserts that the Lecture-day was Friday, which that year would fall 
on the 21st. This, he thinks, is conclusive upon the subject. But as religious 
meetings were numerous in those days, the Lecture might have been on some 
other day, or some other meeting might have been confounded with the 
Lecture. Mather sets it down as the 21st. But the fact that he adds a tale of 
the sufferings of the captives taken by the Indians, which, if true, could not 
have been known at the time, shows that this entry must have been made 
sometime after the date ; which does not strengthen his authority. The 
Roxbury Records, where several of the slain belonged, fix the battle on the 
21st. Gage, in his History of Rowley, where Captain Brocklebank and others 
engaged in the battle resided, places it on the 21st. Judge Sewall, in his journal, 
places it on the 21st; and the Probate Records of Middlesex, which are very 
reliable, sets down the death of those who fell as occurring on the 21st. Those 
who advocate the latter date assert, with a good degree of probability, that 
Gookin's intimacy with the Praying Indians, enabled him to obtain, through 
them, the earliest intelligence from the interior, and that they could in four or 
five hours convej' the news to Charlestown. 



77 

attack. For a time the English maintained good order, and 
having retreated to an adjacent hill, sustained the conflict for 
nearly foiu- hours, with a loss of only four or five men. Mean- 
while the Indians had lost a great number, which so enraged 
them, that they resolved upon another stratagem. They im- 
mediately set fire to the woods to the windward of the English, 
Avhich spread with great rapidity, owing to an exceedingly 
high wind, and the dryness of the grass and other combusti- 
bles. This stratagem succeeded better than the first ; for the 
first brought on an attack which had proved nearly fatal to the 
originators, but this was crowned with complete success. The 
fury of the flames drove the English from their advantageous 
position, which enabled the Indians, from their superior num- 
bers, to fall upon them with their tomahawks, and assault them 
on every side. In this way many were enabled to attack a 
single individual, and the vast superiority of numbers at length 
prevailed over courage and discipline. All the English but 
about twenty were killed, or fell into the hands of the enemy ; 
among the former were the two captains. Some of those who 
escaped, took shelter in a mill not far distant, and were saved 
by the timely arrival of Capt. Prentice, with about fifty horse, 
and Capt. Crowell, who fortunately was on his way from 
Brookfield with about thirty men. Both of these officers 
narrowly escaped the fate of the gallant Wadsworth and 
Brocklebank. 

The number of the English killed in this bloody encounter 
is not certainly known. Different estimates have been made ; 
but it is probable that the true number was about thirty — a 
great slaughter, considering the number of men engEiged. The 
loss of these men, with their gallant commanders, was severely 
felt by the Colony. " Wadsworth," says Hubbard, the his- 
torian of this war, " was a resolute, stout-hearted soldier, and 
Brocklebank was a choice-spirited man." While this and even 
greater praise is due to them, they probably suffered their zeal 
and courage to carry them too far, and to neglect that precau- 
tion which is all-important, in contending with such wily and 
treacherous enemies. 

Capt. Samuel Wadsworth was the youngest son of Chris- 
topher Wadsworth, one of the early Plymouth Pilgrims, who 
settled in Duxbury with Miles Standish. Samuel Wadsworth 
11 



78 

was bom at Duxbury, about 1630, and was therefore forty-five 
or six years of age at the time of his death. He first appears at 
Milton on their Records in 1656, and was interested in the 
separation of that town from Dorchester, and in its incorpora- 
tion, in 1662. He was the first commander of a company of 
mihtia in Mikon, filled important town and church offices, was 
a representative in the General Court, and was highly esteemed 
by his fellow-townsmen. 

Capt. Samuel Brocklebank, of Rowley, was born in Eng- 
land, and was also about forty-six years of age at the time of 
his death. The loss of these brave men and so many of their 
gallant followers, spread grief and consternation through Marl- 
borough and the neighboring towns. So great was the dismay, 
that the settlement at Marlborough was substantially broken 
up, most of the families retiring to the older towns for safety, 
where they remained till the war was over — ^which practically 
terminated with the death of Philip, in August, 1676. 

After this victory at Sudbury, the tide of war seemed to turn 
against the Indians. They dispersed through the Colony, and 
in May and June burnt a portion of Bridge water and Plymouth, 
and visited again the valley of the Connecticut ; but the chas- 
tisement they received at Deerfield, and Hatfield, and Hadley, 
broke their courage, and many of them were ready to sue for 
peace. Philip, who had fled to the Mohawks, attempted to 
engage them in his interest ; but failing in that, he returned, 
and was lurking about Mount Hope. The troops of Massachu- 
setts and Plymouth kept a careful watch for him. At length 
Capt. Church, with about thirty of his own soldiers and twenty 
friendly Indians, surprised him in his quarters, killed about one 
hundred and thirty of his men, and took his wife and son 
prisoners. Philip himself just escaped with his life. 

About ten days after, the persevering and determined Church 
had an opportunity to rid the country of this terrible enemy. 
Philip having put one of his warriors to death for advising him 
to make peace with the English, the brother of the slaughtered 
man, fearing the same fate, fled to the English, informed them 
of Philip's place of retirement, and offered to lead them to his 
camp. Capt. Church, who never suffered an opportunity to be 
lost, started early on the morning of the 12th of August, 1676, 
came to the swamp where the daring chief was encamped, and 



79 

before he was discovered, had placed a guard about it, so as to 
encompass it, except at one point. He then ordered Capt. 
Goulding to rush into tlie swamp at the point unguarded, and 
fall upon Philip in his camp, which was immediately done. 

On discovering the approach of the English, Philip was the 
first to fly. Having but just awakened from sleep, and having 
on but a part of his clothes, he seized his gun and fled \vith 
precipitation, running directly to a thicket where Church had 
placed an Englishman and an Indian, to intercept his flight. 
On his near approach, the faithful guard arose from their secret 
covert. The Englishman presented his musket, but it missed 
fire ; the Indian, whose gun was loaded with two balls, sent 
one of them through Philip's heart. He fell in the mud and 
water, with his gun under him, and expired. 

Alderman, the Indian who shot Philip, was a brother of the 
warrior he had put to death, and the one who had led Church 
to the place of Philip's concealment. 

Agreeably to the spirit of the times, which we cannot at this 
day commend, Capt. Church ordered Philip to be beheaded and 
quartered. The Indian who executed this order pronounced a 
warrior's eulogy : " You have been one very great man. You 
have made many a man afraid of you. But big as you be, I 
will now chop you to pieces." 

Thus fell a savage hero and patriot — of whose daring cour- 
age and transcendent abilities, our history furnishes melancholy 
evidence. With the fall of Philip, expired the hope of his 
tribe and the confidence of his confederates. The war was 
continued in the Province of Maine for some time, but in the 
Colony proper the people had rest. 

It is impossible for us, at this day, fully to realize the situa- 
tion of the inhabitants of Marlborough at that eventful period. 
They were in a manner a frontier settlement. After the de- 
struction of Brookfield, there was no town west of them this 
side of Connecticut River ; and though the town was made a 
military post, and troops were quartered there to protect the 
inhabitants, and keep open a line of communication with Con- 
necticut River, such a post could do but little towards defend- 
ing the laborers in theii* fields, or the families scattered over the 
township. The midniglit incursions of the wily foe, and their 
secret, stealthy march through the surrounding forests, rendered 



80 

the families nearly as insecure as though no troops were in the 
place. Their condition was truly deplorable. Exposed at all 
times to a sudden surprise, or a secret ambush, the laborer felt 
no security amid his toils, and his family, in his absence, were 
filled with apprehension that he might fall a prey to the merci- 
less enemy, or that they might be massacred in the absence of 
their protector. Thus a death with torture, or a hopeless cap- 
tivity, must have constantly haunted their imagination. At 
night many of them repaired to their garrisons, leaving their 
homes and whatever they contained an easy prey to the enemy. 
Their perilous condition is well described in a stanza of a fron- 
tier ballad : 

" The hostile savage yells for prey 

Along the pathless wild ; 
The huntsman's track is watched by day, 

By night his sleep's beguiled. 
His blazing cottage lights the gloom, 

His infant shrieks the alarm ; 
His wife sinks lifeless in a swoon, 

Or bleeds within his arm." 

The horrors and devastation of Philip's war have no parallel 
in our history. The Revolution was a struggle for freedom ; 
the contest with Philip was for existence. The war lasted 
only about fourteen months ; and yet the towns of Brookfield, 
Lancaster, Marlborough, Medfield, Sudbury, Groton, Deerfield, 
Hatfield, Hadley, Northfield, Springfield, Weymouth, Chelms- 
ford, Andover, Scituate, Bridgewater, Plymouth, and- several 
other places, were wholly or partially destroyed, and many of 
the inhabitants were massacred or carried into captivity. Dur- 
ing this short period, six hundred of our brave men, the flower 
and strength of the Colony, had fallen, and six hundred dwell- 
ing-houses were consumed. Every eleventh family was house- 
less, and every eleventh soldier had sunk to his grave. 

The inhabitants suffered almost every privation. Nor were 
the sufferings confined to them. The gallant soldiers who took 
their lives in their hands to preserve the English settlement, 
endured incredible hardships from cold and hunger and fatigue ; 
and though subjected to tedious marches through trackless 
forests, and to a winter campaign amid drifts of snow, where 
they were exposed in their destitution to the midnight attack 



81 

and the secret ambush of an enemy practiced in every art of 
guile, and every species of torture, they bore their sufferings 
with unwavering fortitude, being determined to endure any 
hardship, and to brave any danger in the cause of their God 
and their country. 

We have no means of knowing the number of Marlborough 
men who were engaged in this war, or who fell in the conflict. 
It being a frontier town, and greatly exposed, it is not probable 
that many of the citizens were called far from home, to en- 
counter the enemy. We have seen that a portion of the citi- 
zens joined Lieut. Jacobs in the bold attack upon the Indian 
encampment. The records of the town give the names of John 
Howe, Henry Axtel, and Eleazer Ward, who were slain by the 
Indians in Sudbury, in 1676. Whether they fell with the 
gallant Wadsworth, in what is known as the " Sudbury Fight," 
or were cut off by some small party of Indians, is uncertain. 
The circumstance that many of the inhabitants left the place 
after the breaking out of hostilities, would naturally account for 
the fact that but few of them were lost in the bloody conflict. 
There are some supposed instances, of individuals being killed 
or captured by the Indians ; but the evidence of the fact is 
mostly traditionary. Hubbard, in his History of the War, 
informs us that on the 16th of November, 1675, Capt. Hench- 
man marched from Boston, and on the fourth day fell suddenly 
upon a party of Indians at Grafton, and " rescued the miller's 
boy taken the week before at Marlborough." He also speaks 
of the shepherd boy killed in Marlborough, the same year. 

The question naturally arises. What course did the Marlbo- 
rough Indians pursue during this war? This subject is involved 
in some uncertainty. They were strongly suspected of being 
in secret league with Philip; and Capt. Mosely was sent by the 
Government to bring them to Boston. He arrived with his 
company at Marlborough, at night, and early the next morning, 
before the Indians had any suspicion of his design, surrounded 
their fort, seized their arms, and obliged them to surrender. 
They made no resistance ; and were talcen into custody by the 
soldiers, their hands tied behind them, and connected by a cart 
rope, were driven to Boston in company with some of the 
Natick Indians ; and from thence were hurried down to one of 



82 

the Islands in the harbor, where it is said they suffered severe 
hardships. 

Gookin, whose acquaintance with the "Praying Indians" 
made him a good judge, labors to show that this harsh treat- 
ment was unjustifiable ; and maintains that they were neutral 
in this war. But there is good reason to believe that some of 
them were treacherous. They did not take any open part in 
the contest, most of them remaining on their plantation. It is 
well known that the Springfield Indians, who professed to be 
friendly, aided in the attack upon Westfield, Hadley, and other 
places. This would naturally lead to a suspicion that others, 
professing fidelity, might also be false. It is also known that 
some of the Marlborough Indians were with the enemy in the 
western part of the State, immediately before their descent 
upon Lancaster ; and though they pretended that they had 
been " carried away by other Indians," and professed a willing- 
ness to return, it is highly probable that they at least, gave their 
red brethren all the information in their power concerning the 
condition of things in Marlborough, and other towns in the 
vicinity, if they did not join in the expedition. And this suspi- 
cion is strengthened by the well-known fact, that they were 
highly displeased with the Marlborough people for locating 
their meeting-house upon what they considered a part of their 
plantation. This may have been one cause of the burning of 
that house. 

After the the war was over, some of the Marlborough Indians 
returned to their former place of abode ; but their plantation 
was in a great measure broken up, and they were compelled to 
seek shelter as best they were able. A considerable portion of 
those who returned, after the close of the war, lived in the 
western part of the town, on the farm of Thomas Brigham, 
one of the early proprietors, and the ancestor of many of the 
Brighams of Marlborough and Westborough. 

" Among those who returned," says Rev. Dr. Allen, " was 
David, alias David Munnanow, who joined Philip, and, as he 
afterwai'ds confessed, assisted in the destruction of Medfield. 
This treacherous Indian had, it is said, a slit thumb, which 
circumstance led to his conviction. He had been absent from 
Marlborough several months, and after his return gave no ac- 
count of himself, whither he had been, or how he had employed 



83 

himself in the mean time. At length, however, an inhabitant 
of Medfield, one whom Munnanow had wonnded, being in 
Marlborough, immediately recognized him by his thumb, and 
charged him with his treachery. At first he denied the charge, 
but finding that the proof against him could not be evaded, he 
owned that he had been led away by Philip, and had assisted 
in the burning of Medfield. He was, however, suffered to live 
without molestation. His wigwam was on the borders of the 
pond near the public house long known as Williams's Tavern, 
where he lived with his family many years, and died in ex- 
treme old age." 

Some of the remnant of these Indians remained in Marlbo- 
rough for some time, being a poor, dissolute race. They had a 
burying-ground in the south-westerly part of the town, where 
the last of them were interred. It has been regarded as sacred, 
no one being disposed to disturb the ashes of those whose 
ancestors were once the proud owners of the country we are 
now permitted to enjoy. 

The war whose history we have thus briefly sketched, had 
inflicted a deep wound upon the Colony. The loss of so large 
a number of its effective men, greatly weakened its strength ; 
and the destruction of so many dwellings and other property, 
left the people impoverished. But the war, which was so 
severe to the Colony, was destruction to their enemies. The 
Indians not only lost a large number of their people, but by 
appealing to the arbitrament of the sword, they had by the 
laws, even of civilized warfare, put their whole possessions at 
hazard. The Colony could now lawfully claim the vacant 
lands from which the Indians had been driven. All the In- 
dians, except those who had remained friendly, had forfeited 
their lands, and most of them retired beyond the bounds of 
the Colony ; so that Philip's war, which greatly impeded the 
growth of the Colony at the time, opened its whole territory 
for settlement, and thus contributed in the end, to give a firmer 
footing to the English settlements. 

It seems to be true of states, as of individuals, that affliction 
gives them character, by enlisting their energies and teaching 
them their dependence. And it is one mitigation of the horrors 
of war, that in many ways, unforeseen by mortals, God makes 
'the wrath of man to praise him.' The history of the world 



84 

presents us with many instances, in which the cause of civih- 
zation and improvement has been promoted by war. This is 
true of the destructive war of King Philip. The Enghsh, up 
to that time, had but a precarious foothold in New England. 
That bloody contest settled the question forever, and gave 
them the undisputed possession of this section of the country. 
No doubt the Colony grew and prospered more, for the suc- 
ceeding half century, than it would have done, if Philip and 
the Narragansets had remained in a state of uncertain peace. 

The French wars were a great scourge to the Colonies, and 
yet they prepared the people for the Revolutionary struggle, 
and so were a means, in the Divine Hand, of training us for a 
higher destiny. And the Revolutionary war, with all its suffer- 
ing and exhaustion, was overruled by Infinite Wisdom for the 
happiness of this people, and for the more rapid spread of the 
principles of civil liberty among the nations of the earth. No 
philosopher of history will pretend, for a moment, that the 
cause of humanity and religion even, would have been pro- 
moted by our remaining Colonies of Great Britain. No doubt 
the prosperity of both nations has been facilitated by the sepa- 
ration. 

And may we not hope that the present distracted state of this 
country may be a means of the advancement of the human 
race. Though it is a sad reflection, that brethren who have 
long dwelt together in unity should assume a hostile attitude 
to each other, and should take the field with all the terrible 
enginery of destruction, it may be that wise and even benev- 
olent ends will be accomplished by this awful scourge. 

We have had, from the first, one degrading and disturbing 
element in the midst of us. The system of human slavery, 
repugnant alike to the spirit of our free institutions and to the 
laws of the Almighty, has ever been a stain upon our national 
character. Its corrupting influence has long been seen and felt 
by our wisest statesmen and purest patriots. Its existence was 
deplored by the fathers of the Republic, who took measures, as 
they supposed, for its gradual extinction. But the purchase of 
Louisiana, and the culture of cotton, gave a new impulse to the 
institution, and placed it upon a firmer basis than it had ever 
before enjoyed. In the meantime, the evil effects of the insti- 
tution were developing themselves in the arrogant and haughty 



85 

demeanor of the slaveholders, who in fact claimed the right to 
rule the nation, as they did their slaves. And to strengthen 
themselves in their lordly demands, they succeeded, by the 
treachery of many northern men, in annexing a large portion 
of slave territory, for the avowed purpose of spreading that 
corrupt and corrupting institution. Strengthened by their suc- 
cess, they plunged the nation into an unnecessary and unjust 
war with Mexico, to further the policy of extending an inhuman 
institution, and enabling the slave States to hold the balance of 
power ; so that they might in future rule the nation, or in case 
of failure, sunder the Republic and set up for themselves. 

The election of a President opposed to their policy, and the 
fact of the more rapid increase of population in the free States, 
showed the arrogant slaveholders that the sovereignty of the 
slave power was doomed. Falling back upon what they falsely 
call their " reserved rights," but in reality, their long-cherished 
and concerted system of treason, they threw off the mask, 
seized the property of the United States, and commenced an 
unnatural and unholy war upon the country from which they 
had derived all their blessings. No alternative was left to the 
free States but to submit to their lawless aggressions, or repel 
their wicked assaults. After a patient forbearance, which has 
no parallel in history, the Government at Washington took the 
firm resolve. A call was made upon the country to sustain the 
Constitution and the Laws. The effect was truly electrifying. 
Party animosities were forgotten, and the whole people in the 
free States rose as one man ; and the only strife was, who 
should fly first to the standard of their common country. 

The history of the world does not present a more sublime 
spectacle than this rising of the free States to sustain the 
blessed inheritance which has come down to us from our 
fathers. They saw that the " irrepressible conflict " had been 
precipitated upon them, and they resolved to meet the issue. 
The fire of patriotism which had slumbered in the American 
bosom, was instantly kindled into a flame, and the northern 
heart beat high with the resolve, that the Union must be sus- 
tained at every hazard ; and the lives and fortunes of the 
people were, without reserve, tendered to the Administration, 
with the solemnly implied injunction that the Rebellion must 
be put down, and the fruitful cause of this treason be restrained, 

12 



86 

suppressed, and finally eradicated from the land. Let this be 
done ; and however great may be the evils of the war, they 
will be more than balanced by wiping out this foul stain from 
our national escutcheon, by extirpating this cancer from the 
body politic, by removing from the land this withering curse, 
which paralyzes our industry, blights our prosperity, dries 
up the fountain of moral sentiment, and, like the poisonous 
sirocco of the desert, scatters disease and death, both physical 
and moral, throughout the fair Eden of our national inher- 
itance. 



i 



CHAPTER IV. 



RE-SETTLEMENT OF MARLBOROUGH — INDIAN WARS, &c. 

The Inhabitants return — Rebuild the Meeting- House — Erect another — Deed 
from the Indians — Petition for the Indian Plantation — The Plantation 
purchased — Deed pronounced void by the General Court — List of Proprie- 
tors — They divide the Lands — The Land Mania general — The People 
erect a New Meeting-IIouse — Establish Schools — Show their Devotion to 
Civil Liberty — Elizabeth Howe taken captive — An Attempt to settle a 
Successor to Mr. Brimsmead — Rev. Mr. Breck settled — Queen Anne's 
War — Capture of the Rice Children — Of John Bigelow — Of Howe and 
Wilder — Of Miss Goodnow — Garrisons — Seating the Meeting-House — 
Westborough set off from Marlborough — Alcocke's Farm and Indian Plant- 
ation annexed — Southborough set off — Death and Character of Rev. Mr. 
Breck. 

On the breaking out of Pliilip's war in 1675, many of the 
inhabitants of Marlborough left the place, to seek shelter in 
more populous and less exposed towns. The absence of the 
settlers, and the destruction of their houses and other property 
by the Indians, had temporarily rendered the place nearly des- 
olate. But on the restoration of peace, the inhabitants returned 
to their former places of residence, and commenced, anew, the 
settlement of the town. In 1677, John Woods, constable, pre- 
ferred a petition to the General Court, setting forth that about 
twenty-seven families had already returned, and prayed that 
they might be permitted to call a town meeting for the man- 
agement of their affairs by the election of town officers, and 
thus renew their mmiicipal organization, which had been inter- 
rupted for two years — which request was granted. 

Among the first objects of their attention, after the choice 
of officers, was that of providing a place for public worship. 
They accordingly proceeded to erect a meeting-house, which. 



88 

like the former, that was burnt by the Indians, was thatched 
with straw, or rather a kind of tall grass taken from a meadow, 
since called, from that circumstance, " Thatch Meadow." 
This house was located on the old spot, and being left in an 
unfinished state, lasted but a few years. In 1680, an unsuc- 
cessful attempt was made to enlarge it. At length, in 1688, a 
largeKand more commodious house was erected, near the site 
of the former, which lasted one hundred and twenty years — 
having stood till the new meeting-houses were erected ; the one 
at Spring Hill, and the other at the West End, in 1806. The 
old meeting-house, in 1689, was valued at ten pounds, and the 
pulpit at four pounds, " which were improved in the new meet- 
ing-house, for carrying on the finishing of that." 

Though the township was granted to the proprietors in 1656, 
by the General Court, which had, by previous treaty with the 
Indians, an undoubted right to convey the land, the Indians 
who remained in Marlborough, after the close of Philip's war, 
laid claim to the township, after the English had been in pos- 
session of it for nearly thirty years. The inhabitants of Marl- 
borough could have no doubt of the validity of their title ; yet, 
moved perhaps by sympathy for the remains of a once power- 
ful but now fallen tribe, and wishing, no doubt, to secure the 
friendship of this remnant for the future, they chose a committee 
to confer with them, and satisfy their demand, if it could rea- 
sonably be done. This committee consisted of Lieut. John 
Ruddocke, Abraham Williams, and Joseph Rice, assisted by 
Maj. Peter Bulkley and Capt. Thomas Hinckman ; and after 
several interviews with the Indians, they agreed to pay them 
thirty-one pounds, on condition that they execute a good and 
sufficient deed, relinquishing all right and title to the lands 
within the township granted by the General Court. This offer 
of compensation must have been regarded as a mere gratuity ; 
for it could not be considered as a legal claim. 

At a meeting of the inhabitants of Marlborough, held April 
21, 168-1, the town unanimously accepted of the proposition, 
and voted to raise the sum of thirty-one pounds, to be collected 
and brought to the meeting-house on the 20th of May ; which 
was accordingly done, and the deed signed by the Indians was 
presented to the town. This deed was given by the Indians of 



89 

Natick and Wamesit, (now Lowell,) the Marlborough Indians 
being a part of the same tribe. 

INDIAN DEED OF THE PLANTATION OF MARLBOROUGH. 

To all Chnstimi people to whom these presents shall come, Greeting : 
Know Yee, That we, the Indian inhabitants of the Phmtations 
called Natick and Wamesit, in the Massachnsctts Colonic in New- 
England, viz. [the names of the grantees, as Avritten below, with 
the omission of Andrew Philim or Pitimee, and John Wamesqut, 
and the addition of Edmund Asowanit, making the whole number 
25,] for and in consideration of the sum of thirty-one pounds of 
lawful money of New England, which said sum, wee the said [here 
the names are repeated] do acknowledge ourselves to have received 
of Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, both of the town of Marl- 
borough, in the County of Middlesex, in New England, Avho, in the 
said payment, not only for themselves, but also as agents in behalf 
of all the rest of their fellow purchasers, belonging to the said town 
of Marlborough, and of the said sum of thirty-one pounds, and every 
part and parcel thereof, wee the said, [names repeated,] for our- 
selves, and for our heirs, executors, administrators and assigns, do 
freely, clearly, and wholly exonerate, acquit and discharge the said 
Abraham Williams and Joseph llice, and all their said fellow pur- 
chasers belonging to the said town of Marlborough, and every of 
them, and their heirs, executors, administrators, and every of them 
forever ; have given, gi-anted, bargained, sold, and by these presents 
do give, grant, bargain, and sell and confirm unto the said Abraiiam 
Williams and Joseph Rice, and unto all their fellow purchasers, 
belonging to the said town of Marlborough, and unto all and every 
of their several heirs and assigns forever, all that tract of land, 
which is contained within the bounds of the Town, Township or 
Plantation, called Marlborough, aforesaid, as the said bounds were 
laid out, plotted, and represented by Mr. Samuel Andrews of Cam- 
bridge, unto the Court of the Massachusetts Colonic aforesaid, and 
by the Court accepted and recorded ; that is to say, all Uplands, 
Meadows, Swamps, Woods, Timber, Fountains, Brooks, Rivers, 
I'uuds, and Herbage within said bounds of the said Town, Towushij) 
or Plantation of Marlboi'ough , together with all and singular the 
appurtenances thereof, and all manner of profits, gains and advan- 
tages, arising upon or from, the said tract of land, which the said 
Abraham Williams or Joseph Rice, or all or any of their fellow pui-- 
chasers, belonging to the said town of JMarlborough, at any time 



90 

formerly had or now have, or hereafter at any time may or shall 
have, (except a certain farm some years laid out to Mr. John Alcocke, 
deceased, which lyeth within the bounds of said town or township 
of Marlborough, and is by the said [names repeated] utterly and 
totally exempted and excluded from this present bargain.) 

To have and to hold all the forementioned tracts of land [here 
the description is repeated] to their own proper use and improvement, 
as is above declared, (except the farm before excepted,) to them- 
selves, the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Eice, and to all tlieir 
said fellow purchasers, belonging to the said Marlborough, and unto 
all and several their heirs, and assigns forever, in a good and sure 
estate of inheritance in fee simple, Avithout any claim or demand, 
any obstruction, eviction, expulsion or molestation whatsoever, from 
us the said, [names repeated,] or from the heirs, executors, adminis- 
trators or assigns of us the Indians, or either of us, or from any 
other person or persons whatsoever, acting by, from, or under ns or 
them, or any of them, our said heirs, executors, administrators or 
assigns. 

" Furthermore, Avee the said [names repeated] do covenant and 
grant, with and to the said Abraham Williams and Joseph Rice, and 
all their said fellow purchasers, belonging to said Marlborough, that 
wee the abovenamed Indians have been until the conveyance and 
assurance made by these presents, the true and proper owners of all 
the said tract of land, lying within the bounds of the plantation or 
township of Marlborough, together with all and singular the appur- 
tenances thereof in our own right, and to our own use, in a good, 
absolute and firm estate of inheritance, and in fee simple, and have 
full power, and good right, and lawful authority to grant, bargain, 
sell, and convey, and assure, the tract of land, and every part and 
parcel thereof, with all and singular the appurtenances of the same, 
as is before in these presents mentioned : And wee the said [names 
repeated] do warrant and assure that all the tract of land and all 
and every the appurtenances thereof, by these presents alienated and 
sold, have been and are at this time of signing and sealing of this 
Deed of Sale, utterly and totally free and clear from any former 
bargains, sales, gifts, grants, leases, mortgages, judgments, execu- 
tions, extents, and incumbrances whatsoever ; and wee the said, 
[names repeated,] for ourselves and our heirs, executors, adminis- 
trators or assigns, do and shall, from time to time, and at all times 
hereafter (as occasion shall afford) confirm, defend, and make good. 



91 



unto all intents and purposes, this whole bargain and sale aforesaid, 
and unto all and several their heirs and assigns forever. 



In Witness of all which premises, wee the said [names repeated] 
have hereunto set our hands and seals, this twelfth day of June, in 
the year of our Lord Christ, one thousand six hundred eighty and 
four, Annoq. Regni Regis Caroli Secundi XXXVI. 



ANDREW PILIM, (Pitimee.) 
Attorney to Old F. Waban. 

Stfjnum. 
JOHN t^ NASQUANET. 

Sii^num. 
WILLIAM X WONONATOMOG. 

Signum. 

johnVj speen. 

Signum. 
LAWRENCE X NOWSAWANE. 

JACOB X PONOPOHQUIN. 

his mark. 
JEREMY X SOSOOHQUOH. 

hi<! mark. 
SAMUEL 1^ WILLIAM. 

Signum. 
NATHANIEL X QUANKATOHN. 

JAMES SPEEN. 

Signum, 
JOHN X WAMESQUT. 

Signum. 
JOB X POHPONO. 

bis mark. 
BENJAMIN X TRAY. 

his mark. 
SOSOWUN X NOO. 

Signum. 
JAMES X WISER. 
SIMON BETOGKOM. 



his mark. 
GREAT X JOHN. 

THOMAS WABAN. 

his mark. 
ABRAHAM X SPEEN. 

his mark, 
GREAT X JAMES. 

JACOB X PETOWAT. 

.Signum. 
JEHOJA X KIN. 

Signum. 
PETER X EPHRAIM. 
Attorney for John Awootamug. 

Signum. 
JOHN X AWOOSAMUG. 

Signum. 
THOM. X DUBLET. 

.Signum, 

BENJAMIN B. BOHO. 



Signed, Sealed, and delivered in presence 
of tis toitnesses : 

SIMON CROSBY, 
JOHN CURTIS, 

his mark. 
HENRY X RICE, 
JOHN MUGUS, 



DANIEL TAKAWOMPAIT. S 



> Indians. 



June llth and I2th, 1684. — At a Court held at Natick, among the Indians, there 
appeared in Court and before me, all the sealers and subscribers to this Deed, being 
twenty-five [there are twenty-six signatures] persons in number, and freely acknowl- 
edged this writing to be their act and deed. 



As attests, 



Daniel Gookin, Sen'r, Assistant. 



This Deed entered in the Register at Cambridge.— Li6. 9, page 293—299. 7. 2. '85. 

By Thomas Danfobth, B. 



92 

It will be seen by the foregoing signatures, that six of the 
grantees, viz., Andrew Pitimee, James Speen, Simon Betogkom, 
Thomas Waban, and Benjamin B. Boho, wrote their names; 
and that the same is true of the two Indian witnesses. This 
fact sliows that, under the guardian care of Eliot and Gookin, 
the Indians had made some advances in learning and civiliza- 
tion. Daniel Takawompait was the pastor of the Indian Church 
at Natick, in 1698, ordained by the great Indian apostle, Eliot. 
He is said to have been a man of great knowledge. Thomas 
Waban was probably the son of Old Waban, the first Indian 
convert in the Colony, and who maintained through life a sober. 
Christian character, and died 1674, aged seventy years. 

If a multiplicity of grantees, or a tedious verbosity of lan- 
guage can add strength to a title, the people of Marlborough 
must have held their lands by a sure tenure. In fact, the 
Indians had no title, either in law or equity, to this township, 
and the payment of the sum of thirty-one pounds, as we have 
already observed, was a mere gratuity, and must have been so 
considered at the time. We mention this to show that the 
people of Marlborough were, in this instance, very liberal 
towards this remnant of a feeble and perishing tribe. And 
we speak of it the more readily, because most of the same 
inhabitants, in another transaction with the Indians of that 
day, pursued a course of doubtful equity, and of an illegal 
character. 

After the close of Philip's war, there was a strong desire man- 
ifested by the inhabitants of Marlborough and the vicinity, to 
possess the land included in the Indian Plantation. The Gen- 
eral Court, in laying out that Plantation, plainly indicated that, 
from its position, it ought, whenever alienated, to belong to 
Marlborough. Hence the pre-emptive right to purchase was 
by the Court secured to them. But it appears that others, be- 
sides the inhabitants of Marlborough, coveted this plantation. 

In May, 1677, Thomas Beaman, Josiah Sawyer, John Bow- 
ker, Josiah Howe, John Witherbee, Joseph Daby, Thomas Mar- 
tin, Samuel Stow, Samuel Winch, John Haynes, and Samuel 
Bush, inhabitants of Marlborough,* Lancaster and Sudbury, 
preferred a petition to the General Court, setting forth that the 

* The names in Italics appear to have been citizens of Marlborough. 



93 

Marlborough Indians, during the recent war, had been per- 
fidious, and had taken part with the enemy, and so had forfeited 
their title to the Plantation of Ockoocangansett ; and that they, 
the petitioners, had been in their country's service, and had 
hazarded their lives against the common enemy, and had suf- 
fered in their estates by having their habitations burnt, so that 
they were unable comfortably to provide for themselves and 
families ; — wherefore they " humbly pray that this Hon. Court 
would be pleased to grant unto these your petitioners, the said 
tract of land, or upon moderate terms, grant sale of said lands 
unto us, that with the blessing of God upon our labors, and 
your Honors' good will, we may be in good capacity to provide 
for ourselves and families ; and your humble suppliants shall 
forever hold themselves obliged, and as in duty they ought, 
ever pray, and endeavor the good and welfare of this Common- 
wealth and this Honorable Court." 

But as humble and devoted as these petitioners professed to 
be, the Court did not see fit to grant their request. 

In May, 168-i, John Ruddocke and thirty-four others of Marl- 
borough, petitioned the General Court for authority to purchase 
the Indian plantation, and some ten of the Indians joined in the 
request. But Capt. Tom, Witt Wahaughton, and twenty-five 
other Indians, memorialize the Court, and allege that they are 
and always have been friends of the English ; and that the 
plantation at Marlborough was granted with an express provis- 
ion, that it was not to be sold without the consent of the Court ; 
but that Thomas Waban and Great James do appropriate to 
themselves the land at Marlborough, and sell it, and that with- 
out order, and keep all the pay to themselves ; they therefore 
ask that the General Court " would be pleased to take so much 
matter of the business for us, as to appoint a committee to in- 
quire into the business, that justice may be done to the Indians 
in this case ; for many Indians are very much distressed about 
it, — we having showed ourselves under the wing of your Hon- 
ors, do rest, hoping for a gracious answer." 

This appeal to the Court was duly considered ; and in this 
case, as in every other in which the Indians were a party, the 
Colony adhered to its plighted faith, and protected the Indians 
in their rights. The General Court did not grant the prayer of 
John Ruddocke and others, and authorize the sale of the plant- 
is 



94 

ation. But it appears that the principal inhabitants of Marlbo- 
rough, headed by John Brigham, resolved to possess the Indian 
lands ; and to cut the knot which they could not untie, on 
the 15th of July, 1684, they obtained, without the consent of 
the Court, a deed of the plantation from the Indians. This 
fact being brought to the knowledge of the General Court, they 
passed the following order on the subject. 

" This Court doth order and declare, that the Indian deed of 
sale to the inhabitants of Marlborough, of five thousand eight 
hundred acres of land lying at Whipsufferadge, near Marlbo- 
rough, granted to the Indians by this Court for a township or 
plantation, which deed bears date July 15, 168-4, is illegal, and 
consequently null and void ; being made and done expressly con- 
trary to the law and order of this Court.''^ 

But notwithstanding this explicit declaration of the Court, 
that the deed was void, and consequently the title invalid, the 
purchasers proceeded at once to take possession of the planta- 
tion, and to lay out and divide the lands. 

" The 29th of October, 1686 : At a meeting of the proprietors 
of Ockoocangansett Plantation, it was ordered that every propri- 
etor should have laid out to him in some of the best of the land 
lying as conveniently as may be to the town of Marlborough, 
thirty acres for a first division of upland, and Mr. John Brigham 
is agreed withall, to lay out the abovesaid lands, and to have 
five shillings a day, the one half in money, the other half in 
corn, rye at four shillings per bushel, and Indian at three shil- 
lings per bushel, and to have his diet all the while he is about 
the work. Also at the same meeting it was agreed that John 
Maynard, Sen., and Richard Barnes, should join with John 
Brigham, to order the laying out of the land, and order high- 
ways according to their best discretion, and they to have two 
shillings a day for their pains, in corn at country prices. Also, 
at the same meeting, it was agreed that when the lots were laid 
out, every proprietor should draw his lot." 

At a meeting of the proprietors, in December of the same 
year, probably to avoid any collision with the General Court, it 
was voted that Maj. Hincksman and others who had a claim 
against the Colony, "should have the thousand acres of land 
which was surveyed by John Brigham, and signified by the 
plats under his hand, should be recorded in the Company's 



95 



Book of Records, so that it make a final settlement of all dif- 
ference about the said land, as to any further claimes." 

As the proprietors of the Indian plantation were in a great 
measure identical with the inhabitants of the town, and as the 
history of the plantation from this time forward is, in part, the 
history of the town, we will give a list of them, which shows 
who were the principal inhabitants in 1686, when the Ockoo- 
cangansett Plantation was practically swallowed up in Marl- 
borough. 



John Ruddocke, 
Jonathan Johnson, 
Nathaniel Joslin, Sen., 
Nathaniel Joslin, Jr., 
Tliomas Barnes, 
Samuel Goodnow, 
Thomas Howe, 
John Barnes, v. 
Isaac Newton, 
Richard Barnes, 
Eleazer Howe, 
Thomas Rutter, 
John Bigelow, 
Moses Newton, 
Thomas Martin, 
Joseph Rice, 
Samuel Brigham, 
Thomas Hincksman, 



Nathaniel Johnson, 
John Barrett, Sen., 
John Rediat, 
Daniel Howe, 
-John Fay, 
John Bowkcr, 
Abraham Howe, 
Jerathmell Bowers, 
Edward Rice, 
James Taylor, 
Thomas Brigham, 
John Jones, 
Mercy Hunt, 
John Gove, 
Joshua Rice, 
William Ward, 
James Ward, 



Nathaniel Rice, 
John Maynard, 
Moses Parker, 
James Woods, 
Joseph Newton, 
Samuel Ward, 
William Eager, 
John Johnson, 
Isaac Amsden, 
Solomon Johnson, 
Thomas Wheeler, 
Samuel Stow, 
James Sawyer, 
Josiah Howe, 
Joseph Bulkley, 
John Brigham, 
William Taylor. 



Feeling uneasy about the title to their lands, the proprietors, 
under their own hand in 1693, agreed that their grants of land 
*' shall stand good to all intents and pui-poses, if they be attested 
by John Brigham their Clerk." But knowing that their own 
act could not supply the legal defect in their original purchase, 
at a meeting of the proprietors, held February 5, 1703, ' it 
was voted that they would try to come into a way for the 
confirmation of their land ; ' and James Sawyer, Thomas Howe, 
and Nathaniel Gove were chosen a committee, " for to atain a 
confirmation." Despairing of any confirmation from the Court 
whose authority they had disregarded, at a meeting held in 
February, 1709, they ' voted that they would make articles 
to bind themselves in a covenant, whereby what we do may 
stand in force.' Subsequently, the proprietors signed a cove- 



96 

nant, that they would pay each his several proportion, to defray 
all charges growing out of their lands. 

They appear to have been conscious that their title was 
invalid; and hence they were willing to make common cause 
against any one who should attempt to dispossess them. The 
Legislature having declared the original purchase illegal, were 
not disposed to retrace their steps, and give legality to a viola- 
tion of their order. But in 1719, another attempt was made 
to obtain a confirmation of the purchase, and the Court finally 
annexed the territory to the town of Marlborough, and at the 
same time confirmed the title to their lands. 

There can be no doubt that the Indians might have dispos- 
sessed the proprietors of their lands, if they had brought a suit 
in the Courts, or had prosecuted their claim before the Legisla- 
ture. But that portion of the tribe which had consented to the 
sale, could have no motive to do it ; and the general dispersion 
of the tribe, and the consciousness that some of their num- 
bers, at least, had been unfaithful during Philip's war, would 
naturally deter them from taking any step, which would pro- 
voke inquiry into their conduct. The General Court, too, 
knowing that the Indian plantation ought, from its position, to 
belong to Marlborough, would not be likely, of their own 
motion, to take any step to dispossess the proprietors. They 
had pronounced the purchase a nullity, and they refused to 
confirm it ; and so left the question to be agitated by those 
who had a direct interest in it. No suit having arisen, and no 
one interrupting their possession, they gained a title by pre- 
scription, and the Court then confirmed it. 

A question here arises as to the justice of the course pursued 
by the people in relation to this territory. So far as their 
course related to the public, it was wrong. They violated 
public policy. The General Court, by providing that their 
assent should be obtained to give validity to a purchase, intend- 
ed to guard the Indians against imposition ; and by purchasing 
the plantation in contravention of that wise and wholesome 
order of the Court, they subjected themselves to the suspicion 
of having defrauded the Indians, whether they did or not. A 
copy of this deed has not been found ; nor has it been ascer- 
tained what sum was paid for the plantation. It is presumed, 
however, that the price was not at all extravagant, but that the 



97 

poor Indians were, to some extent at least, defrauded in the 
bargain. 

But the people of Marlborough have at least this apology; 
they acted in accordance with the spirit of the age. The thirst 
for land incident to all new settlements, took pretty strong hold 
of the people at that day. They probably were imbued with 
the superstitious belief that, like the Israelites of old, they were 
in a manner sent to drive out the heathen. The evils of the 
late war, the barbarity of the Indians, and the great losses they 
had experienced, would naturally strengthen their faith in their 
mission to make this country a Canaan of rest, which they 
could best do by cultivating the soil, where the enemy so 
recently lurked in ambush. One of the characteristics of our 
worthy ancestors was, the love of expansion and desire for 
landed possessions. We see this exhibited not in Marlborough 
alone, but in every settlement. Petitions are presented to the 
General Court, setting forth their immediate wants or sufferings, 
their inability to support their families, and closing with a 
prayer for a grant of wild land, that could not in any degree 
administer to their present wants, however it might contribute 
to their future wealth. This desire for landed possessions 
became a kind of mania with the people generally, and almost 
the whole community were engaged in such speculations. 

Outward circumstances contributed to fan this flame. The 
fear of having the Colonial charters revoked, induced all the 
Colonies to be liberal in the grants of their lands ; and the dis- 
putes which arose among the Colonies concerning the bound- 
ary of their respective dominions, made all parties inclined to 
grant lands freely, especially within the disputed territory. 
The paucity of the Indian tribes, which at the first establish- 
ment of the Colony, left a vast quantity of vacant territory, and 
the almost extinction of these tribes by the late destructive war, 
opened a still more extensive field for settlements. The people 
thought that, as they had driven out the heathen by suffering — 
by toil — by blood — they were justly entitled to some remunera- 
tion for the hardships they had endured, and the losses they 
had sustained ; and that a liberal inheritance of the soil, which 
they had thus redeemed from savage beasts and savage men, 
was no more than their just due. As in war it is lawful to 



98 

forage upon the enemy, and as "to the victors belong the 
spoils," they could easily reconcile themselves to the reception 
of a liberal tract of that land which God had designed for civil- 
ized man. 

These feelings, however just they may be, when kept within 
proper bounds, and restricted to their absolute wants, were un- 
doubtedly carried to considerable extent, and may perhaps 
justify the remark that they tolerated at least the sentiment 
which is now almost openly proclaimed, that it is innocent to 
cheat the public. And though the first settlers of Marlborough 
may not have been faultless in the purchase of the Indian 
plantation, it hardly becomes those of us at the present day, 
who run wild in pursuit of California gold, or who embark in 
every vain scheme of speculation, to accuse them of selfish- 
ness. But while such considerations may disarm an accuser, 
they can hardly justify the policy, or sanctify the act itself. 

After the close of the Narraganset, or Philip's war, Marl- 
borough enjoyed a season of peace. Industry revived ; their 
habitations were rebuilt ; and a considerable acquisition was 
made to the settlement. The people turned their attention to 
their municipal atfairs, to the improvement of those institutions 
on which the prosperity of every community must depend. 
We have already said that, in 1688, the people erected a new 
house of worship. This house, for that day, was large and 
commodious, as may be inferred from the fact that, with a few 
modifications, it met the wants of the people for more than a 
century. It appears, however, that at that early period there 
was some opposition to the location of the house. The love of 
expansion had already planted several families west of the 
Assabet, and near Chauncy pond ; and it was clearly foreseen 
that a considerable settlement woidd grow up in that part of 
the township. To satisfy these families, it was voted, " That 
if the westerly part of the town shall see cause afterwards to 
build another meeting-house, and find themselves able to do so, 
and to maintain a minister ; then the division to be made by a 
line at the cartway at Stirrip brook, where the Connecticut 
way now goeth, and to run a parallel line with the west line of 
the bounds of the town." 

This act of the town showed a liberal spirit towards the dis- 



99 



tant settlers, and laid the foundation for the erection of a new 
town, which subsequently took place. 

The early Records of Marlborough are exceedingly meagre. 
Save the division of lands and the laying out of highways, 
there is no record of their municipal proceedings for a long 
period. There must have been a record of their doings at the 
time, but it is unfortunately lost. From 1665 to 1739 there is 
no consecutive account, so that we have to depend upon a hint, 
here and there, found in the proprietors' records, or connected 
with the doings of the Company owning the Indian plantation. 
We learn from these that Benjamin Franklin, probably an 
uncle of Dr. Franklin, was employed as a schoolmaster in 
Marlborough, from the first of November, 1696, to the last of 
March, 1697, at eight shillings per week ; " he engaging care- 
fully to teach all such youth as come, or are sent to him, to 
read English once a day, at least, and more, if need require ; 
also to learn to write and cast accounts." This sciiool was 
kept at Isaac Wood's house, which was then unoccupied. Jan- 
uary 10, 1698-9, the town voted to build a school-house. After 
this, Mr. Jonathan Johnson was employed as a schoolmaster 
several years in succession. 

The inhabitants of Marlborough manifested, at an early day, 
their devotion to the cause of liberty. When the tyrant, An- 
dros, was resisted, and made prisoner by an indignant people, 
for his numerous acts of oppression, on the 18th of April, 1689, 
the Government of the Colony was superseded by an organiza- 
tion which took the title of " A Council for the Safety of the 
People and the Conservation of the Peace." This Council 
recommended to the towns to meet by delegates to provide for 
their own safety. Marlborough responded to the call, and 
Obadiah Ward, Sen., and John Brigham, were chosen dele- 
gates ; and when the Convention had duly considered the sub- 
ject, they resolved " to resume the Government according to 
Charter rights ; " and the Governor and Magistrates chosen in 
1686, were requested to carry on the affairs of the Colony. 

Though the Indians who were confederated under Philip, 
submitted to the English after the death of their daring leader, 
the northern and western Indians, instigated by the French in 
Canada, made frequent incursions into the Colony, but did not 



100 

generally penetrate as far south and east as Marlborough. 
There were, however, a few isolated cases in which they stole 
into the town or neighborhood, and destroyed or carried into 
captivity a few individuals. 

On the 18th of July, 1692, a party of Indians assaulted the 
house of Peter Joslin, in Lancaster, who was at labor in the 
field, and barbarously butchered his wife and three children, 
together with a widow lady living in his family. Elizabeth 
Howe, of Marlborough, daughter of John Howe, and a sister 
of Mrs. Joslin, was there on a visit at the time, just before the 
period fixed for her marriage. She, with one of Mrs. Joslin's 
children, was carried into captivity. The child was murdered 
in the wilderness, but she was retained three or four years, 
when she was redeemed by the Government. After she re- 
turned to her friends, she was married to Thomas Keyes, to 
whom she was engaged before her capture. Mr. Keyes, sup- 
posing she was irrecoverably lost to him, resolved never to 
marry ; but, on her return, wisely changed his mind. She was 
never able to overcome the shock of terror she experienced at 
the time she was made a prisoner, though she lived to the age 
of eighty-seven years. 

We should be glad to open the century with a full view of 
the condition of the town at that time ; but the meagre state 
of the Records up to 1700 forbid any such detail. The ex- 
cellency of the soil, its adaptation to grass and to orchards, 
which were early planted, and produced an abundance of fruit ; 
and above all, the acquisition of the Indian plantation, would 
naturally bring settlers to the place. There had been an addi- 
tion of several families. The names of Stow, Morse, Weeks, 
Holloway, Sherman, Bigelow, Wheelock, Keyes, Forbush, 
Oakes, Hapgood, and others, had been added to the list of the 
inhabitants, and there must have been a considerable increase 
in the older families in the place. But the thirst for more land, 
and the fear of being " straitened " for the want of room, led 
many of the settlers to move farther west. In fact, Marlborough, 
for a long period, was a sort of way-station — a place for a tem- 
porary sojourn for the families which were bound to towns 
farther in the interior. The Howes, the Brighams, the Rices, 
the Wards, the Newtons, and several other families which were 



101 

numerous here, early commenced a tide of emigration ; and 
Shrewsbury, and Brookfield, and Rutland, and Worcester, and 
Grafton, drew largely from the population of this town. 

In 1701, the church and town had the misfortune to lose 
tlieir minister, the Rev. Mr. Brimsmead. Though he had be- 
come rather infirm, he had kept them together in peace. But 
on his decease, an unfortunate misunderstanding arose. Avhich 
greatly disturbed the quiet of the town. In September of that 
year, Rev. John Emerson, a native of Ipswich, and a graduate 
from Harvard in 1689, was invited to become their minister. 
This gave rise to a warm and bitter controversy, in which 
there was too much evidence that the parties belonged to the 
church militant. In March, 1702, Mr. Emerson declined the 
invitation, which was renewed in April, and declined again in 
May. The advice of several distinguished divines was asked, 
and two ecclesiastical councils were convened, both of which 
advised Mr. Emerson to decline the invitation, in consequence 
of the divided state of opinion among the people. The papers 
connected with this controversy, such as letters of invitation, 
remonstrances, and the results of councils, have been pre- 
served, and among them are letters from Increase and Cotton 
Mather. 

These papers, while they show a decided opposition to the 
settlement of Mr. Emerson, on the one hand, and a fixed deter- 
mination for his settlement, on the other, give us no distinct 
information relative to the grounds of opposition. The character 
or doctrines of the candidate are not (luestioncd, nor any rea- 
sons alleged, of sufficient magnitude, to justify the excitement 
which prevailed among the j^eople for more than a year. The 
feeling was probably somewhat personal and sectional, and may 
have been the germ of local considerations which subsequently 
disturbed the peace of the town. In those days, when the 
religious element was in active operation, whatever disturbed 
the people in that respect, extended to all the relations of life. 
They regarded the ecclesiastical as the fundamental principle 
of society ; and though they may have mistaken their own 
prejudices for the promptings of religious faith, they acted as 
though the impulse were from on high. Though we cannot 
justify their course, we are willing they should be judged in 
the spirit of the age in which they lived. Nothing but feelings 
u 



102 

deep-seated, and resting somewhat on religions convictions, 
conld have aroused the whole commnnity, and brought the 
principal men* before the public in this determined manner. 

After Mr. Emerson declined the invitation at Marlborough, 
he was settled in New Castle, N. H., in 1703, where he re- 
mained till 1712, when he took a dismission, and was after- 
wards settled in Portsmouth, N. H. He died there, 1732. 

The unprofitable controversy in relation to the call of Mr. 
Emerson having been brought to a close, by his absolute 
refusal to settle among them, the people of Marlborough, before 
attempting to settle a minister, thought it expedient to take 
counsel of the churches. Accordingly, Rev. Joseph Estabrook, 
of Concord, Rev. Thomas Clarke, of Chelmsford, and Rev. 
Grindall Rawson, of Mendon, were called to advise in their 

* Those who opposed the settlement of Mr. Emerson were William Kerly, 
Obadiah Ward, Samuel Stow, James Taylor, Jr., Joseph Morse, William Taylor, 
James Hosmer, John Howe, Josiah Howe, Thomas Howe, Supply Weeks, John 
Barnes, Sen., John Barnes, Jr., Nathaniel Johnson, Alexander Stewart, Joseph 
Wait, Daniel Newton, Zachary Eager, Isaac Bellows, Thomas Axtell, Eleazer 
Bellows, Daniel Johnson, Adam Holloway, James Keyes, John Barrett, Jr., 
Joseph Newton, Sen., David Newton, John Newton, Edward Newton, Thomas 
Newton, James Sawyer, Abiel Bush, Daniel Flagg, Zechariah Newton, Joseph 
Johnson, Isaac Woods, John Newton, Sen., John Sherman, James Taylor, 
Samuel Johnson, John Wheeler, Samuel Bigelow, John Maynard, Sen., 
Thomas Bruce, John Woods, Jr., Samuel Wheelock, Isaac Howe, Samuel 
Morse, Moses Newton, Thomas Witherbee, Thomas Hapgood, Thomas Keyes, 
Ebenezer Taylor, Jonathan Johnson, John Newton, Jr., John Johnson, Samuel 
Morse, David Church, Isaac Amsden, and John Bigelow. 

Those who sustained Mr. Emerson were Abraham Williams, Richard Barnes, 
Sen., John Bowker, James Taylor, Sen., Thomas Rice, Eleazer Rice, Abraham 
Howe, Nathan Brigham, Richard Barnes, Jr., Peter Rice, Henry Barrett, Ben- 
jamin Rice, Daniel Howe, Jacob Rice, Samuel Goodnow, Jr., Eleazer AVard, 
Jonathan Brigham, John Brigham, Jr., William Ward, Sen., Simon Maynard, 
Gershom Fay, Edward Rice, Jr., Thomas Brigham, Gershom Bigelow, Thomas 
Forbush, David Brigham, Edmund Rice, Joseph Newton, Jr., John [Mathis, 
Increase Ward, Thomas Beaman, Joseph Newton, Peter Bent, Samuel Ward, 
Sen., Nathaniel Oakes, Joseph Ward, Joseph Stratton, John Barrett, Jr., 
Edward Barnes, John Maynard, Jr., Samuel Brigham, Nathaniel Joslin, David 
Maynard, Samuel Forbush, Joseph Witherbee, James Rice, and John Johnson, 
Sen. 

These two lists must have comprised nearly all the men of the town at that 
time ; and they serve to show how many men there were, and who they were, 
at the commencement of the eighteenth century. This list also shows that the 
controversy was in a great degree sectional — those in favor of Mr. Emerson 
being mostly from the west, the others from the east part of the town. 
Though a few names appear on both sides, this is not uncommon in such con- 
troversies. 



103 

proceedings. Their recommendation, after due consideration, 
was adopted by the church and inhabitants unanimously. It 
was dated the 26th day of the 3d month, 1704, and was as 
follows : 

" Whereas the inhabitants of the town of Marlborough did, upon 
the 25th of the 3d month, 1704, apply themselves in a public meet- 
ing to us, the sub.scribers, lor advice ; referring to such a regulatiou 
of future steps towards the settlement of the Gospel Ministry in said 
town, as may tend to establish peace among them : 

" We, according to our best judgment, after Ave liad duly considered 
this subject, do advise : 

" 1st. That they themselves lay aside all thoughts of seeking after 
any minister to settle among them, unto whom they have given a call 
formerly, and could not settle without hazarding the breach of the 
town peace. 

" 2d. That the ratable inhabitants of said town, being legally 
warned, do pass into a joint nomination of three persons, out of 
whom (as in the subsequent advice will be contained) one shall be 
chosen for tlie minister, in the manner hereafter declared. 

" 3d. We judge it advisable for them in the present circumstances, 
that the said nominations proceed after this manner, tliat is to say ; 
that the whole of the ratable inhabitants vote each man for whom he 
shall find his heart inclined, and the man that hath the mcst voles 
shall be one of the three out of whom the subsequent election shall 
be made, and so the nomination of a second or third repeated till the 
number be completed. 

" 4th. We judge it at present, as the case stands with them, that 
the Church having the three persons nominated as above presented 
to them, do out of all them, choose one for their pastor, who being 
by the subsequent vote of the major part of the ratable inhabitants 
chosen as the law directs, shall be the minister of said town." 

Proceeding according to this recommendation, Mr. Robert 
Breck of Dorchester, son of Capt. John Breck of that town, 
received an invitation to take the pastoral charge of the Society, 
which he accepted. He was born December 7, 1682, gradu- 
ated at Harvard College, 1700, and was ordained October 25, 
1704, when only twenty-two years of age. His salary was 
to be " seventie pounds annually, and fire-wood for the year 
annually, and settlement one hundred pounds." 

Though the people had been greatly divided, the religious 



104 

element being strong, and their spiritual advisers having recom- 
mended peace, they at once conquered their prejudices, and 
received their newly elected minister with open arms ; and 
though he was at that time young, and consequently inexperi- 
enced, he succeeded in satisfying the wants of his people, and 
had a happy and successful ministry. 

The churches of Concord, Chelmsford, Dorchester, and Men- 
don, were invited to induct him into his spiritual office. The 
record of his ordination is as follows : 

" The 25th day of y« 8™- 1704, Mr. Robert Breck was or- 
dained Pastor of y*^ Church of Christ in Marlborough, no person 
objecting. Mr. Rawson (of Mendon) carried on the work of 
the day. Mr. Estabrook (of Concord) gave y^ Charge. Mr. 
Clark (of Chelmsford) y® Right Hand of Fellowship. Mr. 
Danforth gave a word of Advice unto y® people." 

Being settled in the town, Mr. Breck married, September 8, 
1707, Elizabeth Wainwright of Haverhill, by whom he had a 
family of children,* somewhat distinguished. 

But though their ecclesiastical difficulties were amicably set- 
tled, and their religious condition was that of peace and pros- 
perity, they were exposed to other difficulties and dangers. In 
what has been denominated "Q,ueen Anne's War," the French 
and Indians made repeated incursions into the Colony, killing 
and carrying away many of the inhabitants. And though Marl- 
borough was not the scene of any battle, the savages in some 
instances stole into the township, and carried several persons 
into captivity. 

" It will be difficult for us," says Dr. Allen, in his History of 
Northborough, " who are permitted to dwell in security under 
the shelter of the domestic roof, to form an adequate idea of the 
perilous condition of our forefathers at this gloomy period. ' We 
have indeed heard with our ears, and our fathers have told us ' 
the story of their dangers and sufferings in the dreary and 
howling wilderness. But how difficult to enter into the feelings 
of men who were in constant peril for their lives ; who, like the 
children of Israel in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, repaired 
to their work with weapons in their hands, and who were liable 
to be waked from their midnight slumbers by the savage yell 
of a pitiless foe ? In many instances were they compelled to 

* See his Genealogy. 



105 



desert their farms, leaving their lands untilled, while old and 
young, the strong and the feeble, flocked to the frail fortifica- 
tions, denominated garrisons, as their only means of safety." 

In July, 1704, a body of six or seven hundred French and 
Indians moved towards Northampton, for the purpose of attack- 
ing and destroying that town ; but finding the people prepared 
to give them a warm reception, they gave ov^er their meditated 
attack, and marched stealthily towards the ill-fated town of 
Lancaster. On the 31st of that month, Capt. Thomas Howe, 
of Marlborough, who was an active and influential man in civil 
and military affairs, gathered in haste whatever force he was 
able, and marched to the relief of the town, where, united with 
a small party under Capt. Tyng, they met the foe, and after a 
severe fight, (in which the English displayed great gallantry,) 
owing to the superior numbers of the enemy, the inhabitants 
and troops were compelled to take refuge in the garrison. The 
houses and property were thus left to the mercy of the Indians, 
who burnt the meeting-house, and a half dozen other buildings. 
In this engagement Capt. Howe had two men, Abraham Howe 
and Benjamin Hutchins, killed, and others wounded. 

In the month following, a small party of Indians entered the 
westerly part of Marlborough, and committed several depreda- 
tions, — the principal of which is thus described by Dr. Allen. 

" August 8th, 1704, a party of Indians, eight or ten in num- 
ber, rushed suddenly from the woods, and fell upon a number 
of the inhabitants of what is now Westborough, while at work 
in the field ; killed Nahor, son of Mr. Edmund Rice, on the 
spot, seized and carried into captivity two other sons, Silas and 
Timothy ; also Ashur and Adonijah, two sons of Mr. Thomas 
Rice. Ashur was redeemed by his father, and returned in about 
four years. He afterwards settled in Spencer. Adonijah re- 
mained in Canada, and cultivated a farm near Montreal. His 
Indian name was Asaundugooton. The other two lived with 
the Indians, married Indian wives, acquired their habits, and 
lost all knowledge of the English language. The puritanical 
names of Silas and Timothy were exchanged for the heathenish, 
but not unmusical ones, of Tookanowras and Oughtsorongaugh- 
ton. The latter is said to have been the third of the six Chiefs 
of the Cagnawaga tribe, and the one who made the speech to 
Gen. Gage, in behalf of his tribe, soon after the reduction of 



106 

Montreal. This Chief, in the year 1740, thirty years after his 
captivity, visited his relations in Westborongh, and retained, it 
is said, a distinct recollection of the circumstances of his cap- 
ture, and several aged persons then living in Westborongh." 

Nothing could be more trying to parents than to have their 
children thus lost to them forever, and doomed to a life worse 
than death itself. How would Christian mothers at this day 
feel, to have their children torn from them in such an unexpect- 
ed manner ; and how would this grief be perpetuated by the 
reflection, that the children they had borne had transferred their 
affections from them to the wild savages of the desert ! 

On the 5th of October, 1705, Mr. John Bigelow, of Marlbo- 
rough, being then in Lancaster, at the garrison Kouse of Tiiomas 
Sawyer, was, with Mr. Sawyer and his son Elias, taken by the 
Indians and carried to Canada. Sawyer was a blacksmith, and 
Bigelow was a carpenter — both ingenious mechanics. While 
they were at Montreal, they turned their mechanical skill to a 
good account. They proposed to the French Governor that, as 
there was no saw-mill in Canada, they would build one, if 
he would procure their ransom. The offer was accepted ; they 
fulfilled their engagement, and after some delay they were per- 
mitted to return to their friends. Mr. Bigelow, as expressive 
of his happiness in having been restored to the bosom of his 
family, called his first daughter, born to him after his return, 
" Comfort." and the second, born about two years later, " Free- 
dom," to manifest his preference for his then present condition 
over the hardships and fears of a state of captivity. 

In 1707, on the 18th of August, a tragical event occurred in 
Marlborough, in that part of the township now included in 
Northborough. Among the garrison houses in town at tliat 
lime, was one known as Samuel Goodnow's garrison, situated 
on the great road near the stream known as Stirrip Brook. 
This garrison was designed as the resort of the families of 
Nathaniel Oakes, Jonathan Forbush and Gershom Fay, as well 
as that of Mr. Goodnow. As Mary Goodnow, daughter of Sam- 
uel Goodnow, and Mrs. Mary Fay, wife of Gershom Fay, were 
gathering herbs in an adjoining meadow, a party of twenty or 
more Indians were seen issuing from the woods, and making 
towards them, when they immediately ran for the fort which 
Mrs. Fay succeeded in reaching, and closing the gate before 



107 

she was overtaken by her pursuers. Fortunately there hap- 
pened to be one man in the garrison, the rest being at work in 
the field. The savages attempted to break through the inclo- 
sure, but were repelled by the heroic defenders within. Mrs. 
Fay loading the muskets belonging to the place, and handing 
them to her companion, he was able to keep up a constant fire 
upon the enemy, till a party of their friends, hearing the report 
of the muskets, came to their relief, when the enemy fled. 
Thus was the life of this woman, and her two young children, 
saved by her own heroism. She was the second daughter of 
John Brigham, the son of Thomas Brigham, Sen., the ancestor 
of all the Brighams who settled in this town. 

The other unfortunate woman. Miss Goodnow, being lame, 
was unable to escape from her merciless pursuers, who seized 
her and dragged her across the brook to a wood on the hill-side, 
where she was killed and scalped ; and where her mangled 
remains were afterwards found and buried. 

On the same day, the Indians surprised and took two men 
who were laboring in the field, Jonathan Wilder, a native of 
Lancaster, and a Mr. Howe of Marlborough, who fortunately 
made his escape. Mr. Wilder was carried to Lancaster and 
killed by the Indians, as was their custom, when attacked by 
the English. On the day after the above tragic scene, Capt. 
Thomas Howe, of Marlborough, with about twenty men, 
marched in pursuit of the Indians, and beifig joined by about 
the same number from Lancaster, they overtook the enemy in 
what is now Sterling, where a severe conflict ensued. The 
affair is thus described in the Boston News-Letter, of the 25th 
of August, 1707. 

" On Monday, the 16th current, thirteen Indians on the fron- 
tier surprised two men at their labors in the meadows at Marl- 
borough, about four miles distant from the body of the town, 
and took them both alive ; and as they passed out of the town, 
they took a woman also in their marching off", whom they 
killed. Howe, one of the prisoners, broke away in a scuflie, 
and brought home the Indian's gun and hatchet, and acquamt- 
ed the garrison and the inhabitants, who speedily followed, and 
were joined by twenty men from Lancaster, being in all forty, 
came up with the enemy, who were also increased to thirty-six, 
and on Tuesday, at ten o'clock, found them, and in two hours 



108 

exchanged ten shots a man, in which skirmish we lost two 
men, and two shghtly wounded ; no doubt we killed several 
of the enemy, whose track being dragged away we saw, but 
recovered but one of them, though it is probably conjectured 
that we killed ten or twelve at least. We took twenty-four of 
their packs and drove them off the ground, and they are yet 
pursued by two parties from Lancaster and Groton. At our 
forces overtaking and attacking them, they barbarously mur- 
dered the captives." 

In the packs taken from the Indians, as mentioned above, 
was found the scalp of Miss Goodnow, which was the first 
intelligence they had of her melancholy fate. In the encounter 
mentioned above, John Farren and Richard Singletary were 
slain. The Records of Marlborough give the death of "■ Jona- 
than Johnson, slain by the Indians, October 12, 1708 ; " but no 
further particulars are stated. In August, 1709, Elisha Ward, 
son of William Ward of Marlborough, was killed or taken 
captive by the Indians at Worcester, while riding post from 
Marlborough to Hadley. 

Although this war did not at any time seem to peril the ex- 
istence of the town, like the Narragansct, or Philip's war, yet 
from the commencement of the century to the peace of 1713, 
the inhabitants of Marlborough were kept in a constant state of 
anxiety and alarm. The stealthy incursions of the guileful foe, 
the secret ambush,- the midnight assault, the murder of the 
laborer in the field, or the mother and her infant in the cabin — 
the dread of the scalping knife, and the fear of a hopeless 
captivity — these are evils more to be dreaded than open war — 
more " terrible than an army with banners." To evils such as 
these, the inhabitants of Marlborough were constantly exposed 
during this lingering war. 

The General Court, knowing the exposed condition of the 
frontier towns, had made some provision for their defense. 
With this encouragement, guided by their own sense of danger, 
the people of Marlborough had erected, for the safety of their 
families, a considerable number of forts in diflferent parts of the 
township, to which the people could resort in time of danger. 
But in order to ensure the greatest security, to prevent confu- 
sion, and to secure to each post a suitable defense in case of 
attack, it was deemed necessary to assign to each family their 



109 



respective fort. To this end, a committee, consisting of 
Thomas Howe, Samuel Brigham, Isaac Amsden, Eleazer 
Howe, Daniel Howe, John Bowker, Jonathan Johnson, Na- 
thaniel Joslin, Peter Rice, John Maynard, and Jolni Barrett, 
was appointed to assign to the twenty-six garrisons the ajipro- 
priate families. This committee, composed of some of the 
leading men of the town, recommended that the families he 
assigned to the respective forts, as follows : — 



1. Capt. Howe's Garrison. 
Samuel Stevens, 
James Howe, 
Jonathan Howe, 
Samuel Stow, 
Jonathan Morse. 

2. Mr. Breck''s Ganison. 

3. Capt. Ktrlifs Garrison. 
Nathaniel Joslin, 
Joseph Maynard, 
Dea. VVooils, 
Nathaniel Johnson, 
Thomas Amsden, 
Simon Gates, 
Joseph Johnson. 

4. Capt. Brigliani's Garrison. 
Peter Plimpton, 
Benjamin Mixer. 

5. Fsaac Amsden''s Garrison. 
Thomas Newton, 
Sergeant Maynard, 
James Woods, 

Adam Martin, 
Is. Temple, 
Deacon Newton, 
John Amsden, 

6. [s. Howe's Garrison. 
Moses Newton, 
David Fay, 

John Newton, 
Widow Johnson, 
Mo.ses Newton, Jr., 
James Cady. 
15 



7. Lieut, ffilliams^s Garnson. 

Thomas Beaman, 
Peter Bent, 
Richard Barnes, 
Edward Barnes. 

8. Ensign Howe's Garrison. 
Ensign Bowker, 
Joseph Wait, 

David Church, - 
Benjamin Rice, 
Peter Rice, 
Joseph Rice. 

9. Samuel JMoniirs Garrison. 
Sergeant Barrett, 

John Barnes, 
Benjamin Bagley, 
Joseph Ward, 
Joshua Rice, 
Thomas Martin, 
Samuel Bush. 

10. Thomas BrighnnCs Garrison. 
Jonathan Brigham, 

Oliver Ward, 
Increase Ward. 

1 1. John Howe's Garrison. 

Zach. Eager, 
Abraham Eager, 
Daniel Johnson, 
Samuel Wheelock, 
Obadiah Ward, 
Thomas Axtell. 

12. Samuel Goodnow^s Garrison. 

Nathaniel Oakes, 
Jonathan Forbush, 
Gershom Fay. 



110 



13. Lieut. Howe's Garrison. 

Thomas Ward, 
Edward Rice. 

14. JVathnn Brighani's Garrison. 

Joseph Stratton, 
Henry Bartlett, 
Alexander Stewart. 

15. Samtiel If'ard, Sr.'s, Garrison. 
Williatn Ward, 

Wid. Hannah Ward, 
Jonathan Johnson, Sen., 
Caleb Rice. 

l(i. John Mattheivs'' Gatrison. 
William Johnson, 
Samuel Ward. 

17. Daniel Rice^s Garrison. 

Wid. Sarah Taylor, 
Supply Weeks, 
Eleazer Taylor. 

18. Sayjiuel Forbusli's Garrison. 

James Bradish, 
Thomas Forbush, 
James Gleason, 

19. Edmund Rice's Garrison. 

David Brigham, 
Isaac Tomblin, 
David Maynard. 

20. Thomas Rice^s Garrison. 
John Pratt, 

Charles Rice. 

21. Thomas Hapgood's Gairison. 
John Forbush, 



John Wheeler, 
Josiah Howe, 
B — Carly, Sen., 
James Carly. 

22. Mill Garrison. 
Thomas Barrett, 
John Banister. 

23. Simon Maynard''s Garrison. 

Adam Hollo way, 
Benjamin Whitney, 
Joseph Newton, 
Joiin Keyes, 
Abiel Bush. 



24. 



25. 



John JVcwton, Jr.^s, Garrison. 
Eleazer Bellows, 
James Eager, 
James Newton, 
Benjamin Newton, 
Ephraim Newton, 
John Woods, 
Abraham Newton. 



Gar 



Jonathan JVewtoii's 
Is. Woods, 
Thomas Witherbee, 
Is. Amsden, 
Moses Lenard, 
Roger Bruce. 



26. Joseph Moi-se^s Garrison. 
Tliomas Bigelow, 
Samuel Bigelow, 
Samuel Morse, 
John Bigelow, 
John Sherman, 
Daniel Harrington. 



It would be interesting, if we could give to each of these 
garrisons a " local habitation," and point out the precise spot 
where every family resided at that day ; but this pleasure is ni 
a great degree denied us. We are able, however, to give the 
general location of a portion of them ; and knowing them, we 



I 



Ill 

learn the neighborhoods in which the different famihes re- 
sided. 

Garrison No. ], was at the old Frank Howe place, where the late Edward 
Rice resided. 

No. 2, was at Mr. Breck's residence, near the old Packard place. 

Nos. 3, 4, and .5, were south-easterly of the East Village, on the rond to 
Southborough. 

No. 6, was on the Southborough road, near the Newton Railroad station. 

No. 7, was near the old Williams Tavern, by the Pond. 

No. 8, was near the present residence of Mr. Tileston Brighani. 

No. 9, was near Fort Meadow. 

No. 10, was near the Warren Brigham place. 

No. 11, was below the Warren school-house, on the Concord road. 

No. 12, was near Stirrip Brook, south of the great road to Northborough. 

No. 13, was north of the Pond, not far from the present residences of Moses 
and Martin Howe. 

No. 14, perhaps south-easterly of the present residence of Joel Gleason. 

No. 15, was south of the Meeting-House. 

No. 16, was in what is now Southborough. 

No. 17, was some two miles easterly of the Meeting-House. 

No. 18, was about a mile northerly of the Old Common. 

Nos. 19 and 20, were in Chauncy, now Westborough. 

No. 21, was in the Indian Plantation, in the north-easterly part of the 
town, near the Wesson place. 

No. 22, was probably near Feltonville. 

No. 23, was on the Indian Plantation, near the Ephraim Maynard place. 

Nos. 24 and 25, were in what is now Southborough. 

No. 26, was upon the " Farm," so called. 

Such, as near as we can learn from tradition, was the general 
location of the garrisons in 1711. As they were mere pickets 
inclosing the houses, their remains would soon perish after the 
close of the war ; and hence no mark of their location would 
long remain. But after this assignment of the forts, there was 
but little use for them, iis the treaty of Utrecht, in 1713, brought 
the war to a close. 

During the whole of this war, Capt. Thomas Howe acted a 
conspicuous part. He not only commanded the garrisons and 
scouts through the town, but led the troops to every place of 
danger which presented itself. Samuel Brigham acted as his 
Lieutenant, and received from the Government a boinity for 
destroying an Indian. Samuel Stevens was wounded in the 
same service. 



112 

After the close of Queen Anne's war, things moved on 
smoothly and quietly in Marlborough. In 1711, the town pro- 
ceeded to finish their meeting-house, which, up to that time, 
had been but partially done on the niside. Having "set their 
house in order," they took measures to perform a duty common 
at that day, and one which proved a source of no small trouble 
in some towns, viz., "to seat the meeting-house." The good 
people of Marlborough do not appear to have been as formal, or 
fastidious, as they were in most of the towns. In many cases 
the vote was ^' to dignify and seat the meeting-house;" and 
frequently the instructions were to " have regard to the rate, age 
and honor" of the inhabitants. But to show that "dignity" 
was not entirely overlooked by them, the people of Marlborough 
provided, by solemn vote, that the front seats in the gallery 
should be next in "dignity" to the second seats below, 
and that the fore seats in the end gallery should be next in 
" dignity " to the third seats below. They also empowered 
their committee, clothed with this important trust, " to grant 
any places for pews aroimd the meeting-house to such persons 
of ' quality ' as they shall see cause ; they that have them, to 
build them at their own cost." They also provided that this 
seating process should take place every five years. They 
further manifested the disposition to accommodate those who 
resided at a distance from the church, by providing that " the 
outlivers shall have the liberty of the school-house Sabbath 
days, leaving the fires safe." 

We may smile at the simplicity of our fathers, or regard 
the seating of the meeting-house as the effect of childish van- 
ity, or mere pride ; but does it become us to bring that accu- 
sation against them ? How are the seats in our meeting- 
houses selected at the present day ? The man of the longest 
purse, or the vainest heart, is pretty sure to purchase a pew 
upon the broad aisle, in the most conspicuous part of the house ; 
so that the main difference in the two cases is little more than 
this: — Then the grade of distinction and honor was decided 
by a committee, and ratified by the town, which was sup- 
posed to be impartial ; now it is left to the individuals them- 
selves. And may there not be as much vanity displayed by 
us as by them ? Pride, which should never be exhibited in a 
place where man holds communion with his Maker, and where 



113 

humility is a cardinal virtue, is not, we fear, entirely excluded 
from the house of God at the present age of boasted light and 
knowledge. Tlie highest seat in the synagogue is coveted now, 
no less than formerly. 

The territory of Marlborough, in the early part of the cen- 
tury, was becoming unwieldy in size. In 1700, a considerable 
tract of land on the north of the Indian plantation, bounded 
on the town of Stow and Dr. Alcocke's* fanii, was annexed 
to Marlborough. The Ockoocangansett, or Indian plantation, 
was in possession of the Marlborough people ; and though it 
was not at that time annexed, was practically a part of the 
town ; so that the whole area must have been at least 37,000 
acres. Such a territory might with propriety be divided. Its 
very extent proved, as it always does in such cases, a source 
of alienation. The location of the meeting-house was far east 
of the centre of the territory, so that the people in the western 
part of the township were put to great inconvenience in attend- 
ing public worship. 

Several families had settled, at an early day. west of the 
Assabet, and near Chauncy Pond, and had done so with an 
assurance given as early as 1688, that they should be erected 
into a parish as soon as they were able to support a minister ; 
and the people of Marlborough, in the spirit of liberality, had 
designated the line for division " at the cart-way at Stirrip 
Brook, where the Connecticut way now goeth, and to run a 
parallel line with the west line of the bounds of the town ; "" 
the division, therefore, became only a question of time. 

But in 1702, not satisfied with the territory that such a 
division would give, Thomas Brigham, Henry Kerly, Richard 
Barnes, Samuel Goodnow and nineteen others, preferred a })eti- 
tion to the General Court, praying that Chauncy (as the west- 
erly part of the town was called) may have an enlargement — 
"• that from the westerly bounds of Marlborough, said settle- 
ment may be extended to Consigamack Pond,t and to a parallel 
line while it runs to Hassenessett,t the Indian Plantation, and 

* This farm of Dr. Aleocke must not be confounded with the "Farm" of 
which we have already spoken, situated in the south-east part of the town. 
The Doctor had land in Stow, and elsewhere. The Stow farm is the one men- 
tioned above. 

t Quinsigamond, or Long Pond, between Worcester and Shrewsbury. 

I Now Grafton. 



114 

so run the full breadth of five miles, till it comes to Hassenes- 
sett, and so butting on that plantation. Also a mile in breadth 
on the southerly side, from the Indian Reservation to the 
Indian bounds." 

The Court referred this petition to their next session, " that 
the farmers might be heard." 

It does not appear that this petition was granted at that time. 
But subsequently, about 1716, John Brigham, and thirty others 
of Marlborough, petitioned for a tract of land, the principal part 
of which is now included in the towns of Shrewsbury and 
Boylston. At the same time, a petition was pending from cer- 
tain inhabitants of Marlborough, to have the westerly part of 
the town, and certain lands lying west of Marlborough, erected 
into a town. This latter prayer was granted, and about 13,182 
acres were set off from Marlborough, and about 3,000 acres 
more were added, including what was then known as the 
" Rice farm " and " Fay farm," lying west of the Marlborough 
grant. Though this was taking nearly one moiety of their 
original territory, the inhabitants of Marlborough interposed no 
serious objection ; so that this might with truth be denominated 
a " peaceable secession." 

The territory thus set off by the Act of the General Court, 
passed November 19, 1717, was, from its geographical position, 
called Westborough. With a territory of 16,182 acres, and 
population deemed sufficient to maintain municipal institutions, 
Westborough immediately set about organizing herself as a 
town. In 1718, she provided herself with that indispensable 
prerequisite of a prosperous community — a meeting-house. 
This building was situated near the northern limits of the 
present town of Westborough, not far from the well-known 
site of the " Wesson Tavern," on the old turnpike from Wor- 
cester to Boston. In 17.24, a church was gathered, and Rev. 
Ebenezer Parkman, their first minister, was ordained. 

We have no means of ascertaining the exact number of 
persons thus set off from Marlborough. A friend has kindly 
favored us with the following memorandum, taken from a man- 
uscript record of Rev. Mr. Parkman. 

" The first inhabitants of Westborough were Thomas Rice, 
Charles Rice, John Fay, Samuel Fay, Thomas Forbush, David 
Maynard, Edmund Rice, David Brigham, Capt. Joseph Byles, 



115 

James Bradish, John Pratt, John Pratt, Jr., Thomas Newton, 
Josiah Newton, Hezekiali Howe, Daniel Warren, Increase 
Ward, Benjamin Townsend, Nathaniel Oakes, Samnel Good- 
now, Gershom Fay, Simeon Howard, Adam Holloway, Thomas 
Ward, and Joseph Wheeler. 

" Young Men. — John Maynard, James Maynard, Aaron For- 
hnsh, Jacob Amsden, Ebenezer Beaman, and Jotham Brig- 
ham." 

These names indicate a Marlborough origin. And in fact, 
some of the Rices, the Brighams, the Fays, the Wards, Good- 
nows, and Forbushes, had located themselves within this terri- 
tory forty or fifty years before, and had reared large families of 
children. 

The first named twenty-five were probably heads of families ; 
while the young men were not. This would give a popula- 
tion of some one hundred and sixty souls, and the excite- 
ment incident to the creation of a new town, would naturally 
bring other persons to the place ; so that, in a few years, they 
were able to erect a meeting-house, gather a church, and settle 
a minister. 

The growth of the new town, and the fact that a ])ortion of 
the hihabitants resided at a considerable distance northerly from 
their meeting-house, suggested the idea of a separation. After 
a controversy somewhat ])rotracted, and accompanied with that 
ill-feeling usually attendant upon the division of a town, on the 
20th of October, 1744, Westborough was divided into two pre- 
cincts, the northern portion taking the name of Northborough. 
Westborough, at the time of the division of her territory, con- 
tained one hundred and twenty-five families ; thirty-eight of 
which were hicluded in the northern precinct. But small as 
was the population thus taken from the parent town, in 1745 
they erected a meeting-house, and in 1746 they organized a 
church, and settled Rev. John Martin as their minister. In 
1766, this precinct was incorporated into a District ; and from 
that beginning has grown up the flourishing town of North- 
borough, whose growth was undoubtedly facilitated by the 
water-power within her borders.* 

* For a further account of Northborough, see Dr. Allen's Sketch, added to 
this history. 



116 

But the loss which Marlborough experienced by the setting 
ofi' of the western portion of her territory, was in a degree 
compensated for by the annexation of other tracts of land. In 
1718, the *' Farm," formerly the land granted to John Alcocke, 
consisting of several hundred acres, was annexed to Marl- 
borough, and the year following, the Indian plantation, con- 
tahiing nearly six thousand acres, was added to the town. 
These two acquisitions amounted to more than half of the 
number of acres cut off to form the town of Westborough. 

Bat the old town of Marlborough was destined to a further 
dismemberment. The people of " Stony Brook," as the south 
part of Marlborough was familiarly called, applied to the town 
to be set off as a distinct municipality. After some delay, the 
town agreed upon a line, and joined in a petition " with the 
Stony Brook men for a confirmation of said township." The 
territory thus set off was incorporated in 1121, by the name of 
Southborough — a name suggested by its geographical position 
with reference to Marlborough. 

The records furnish no accurate information as to the num- 
ber of persons thus set off ; but it must have been a serious loss 
to the old township to have a valuable portion of her territory 
taken from her, and especially as the dividing line approached 
within about a mile and a half of the principal village, cutting 
off the Newtons, the Fays, and several of the prominent fam- 
ilies. But this dismemberment, like the former, created but 
little animosity, and was in fact a " peaceable secession," the 
old town not choosing to employ " coercion " to bind them to 
her bosom. 

Thus has the original township been carved into four distinct 
and now flourishing towns ; so that old Marlborough may justly 
claim to be not only the mother of emigrants, but the mother 
of townships. Though Westborough, Southborough, and 
Northborough, were formerly included in Marlborough, and 
their early history is a portion of that of the parent town, we 
shall not pursue their respective histories after their separation ; 
for, like the child who has left the old homestead, and set up 
for himself, they have a history of their own, worthy of being 
laid before the public. Marlborough still regards them with 
maternal affection ; but is fully conscious, from their successful 
experiment, that they are amply able to provide for themselves. 



117 

She rejoices in their prosperity ; slie glories in the distinguished 
men they have produced ; and if she were called upon to pre- 
sent her richest treasure, she would, like the Roman matron, 
point to her offspring and say, *' These are my jewels." 

The people of Marlborough had been prosperous and happy 
under the ministry of Mr. Breck ; and being ardently attached 
to him, they had anticipated his wants and ministered to his 
comfort. When, by the depreciation of the currency, his 
salary became insufficient for his support, they readily raised it 
from sixty to one hundred pounds. But earthly happiness is of 
short duration. On the 6th of January, 1731, they were called 
to experience a severe affliction in the death of their beloved 
pastor. Mr. Breck had for a considerable time been unable to 
supply the pulpit, and the town had generously paid for the 
supply. And when he was taken away, they manifested their 
regard for his memory, by appropriating fifty pounds to defray 
the expenses of his burial. 

Before Mr. Breck's settlement in Marlborough, he preached 
for a time on Long Island, in the Province of New York, 
during the government of Lord Cranbury, where he had the 
courage, though young at that time, to assert and adhere to the 
cause and principles of the Non-Conformists, notwithstanding 
the threatenings and ill treatment he there met with. 

" He was a man of strong natural powers, clear-headed, and 
of sound judgment, and by his imwearied diligence and study, 
he obtained great skill in the learned Languages, (uncommon in 
the Hebrew ; using to read out of the Hebrew Bible to his 
family,) as also in Philosophy, the Mathematics, and History, 
as well as in Divinity, in which he was sound and orthodox, 
a good Casuist, a strong Disputant, a methodical and close 
Preacher." 

The highest testimonials of his worth appeared in the peri- 
odicals of the day, and his brethren in the ministry paid a just 
tribute to his memory. Three funeral sermons, preached at 
Marlborough on the occasion of his death — one by Rev. Mr. 
Swift of Framingham, another by Rev. Mr. Prentice of Lan- 
caster, and the third by Rev. Mr. Loring of Sudbury — were 
published and are now extant. The following description, by 
a cotemporary, gives a view of the man. " His temper was 

10 



118 

grave and thoughtful, and yet cheerful at times, especially with 
his friends and acquaintances, and his conversation entertaining 
and agreeable. In conduct he was prndent and careful of his 
character, both as a minister and a Christian ; rather sparing of 
speech, and more inclined to hear and learn from others. His 
house was open to strangers, and his heart to his friends ; and 
he took great delight in entertaining such as he might in any 
way improve by, and treated them with good manners. The 
languishment and pain he went through before his death, were 
very great ; but God enabled him to bear the affliction with 
patience and submission." 

Mr. Breck was a faithful and devoted minister, and was 
highly respected and esteemed ; and his abilities were well 
known and acknowledged. He preached the Election Sermon 
in 1728, which was published. His text was the well known 
passage : " Fear God, and keep his commandments ; for this 
is the whole duty of man." In the discourse he labored to 
show that fear, or trust in God, was not only " the beginning 
of wisdom," but the source of safety and happiness, for indi- 
viduals and for communities ; and after reminding our rulers 
that the obligation to comply with the requisition of the text, 
was increased by their exalted stations, on the true democratic 
principle he appeals to the fountain of power, the people, in 
the following manner : 

" I shall conclude when I have briefly addressed myself to the peo- 
ple of this land, that they Avould lay these things to heart, and strenu- 
ously apply themselves to seek their own and posterity's welfare and 
happiness, in the way and method in our text prescribed, AVithout 
you, all that our rulers in civil and sacred orders can do, will not avail. 
Though our Legislature enact never so many good laws for the regu- 
lation of the morals of the people, unless you do your part, and im- 
prove the power and liberty you are invested with, in your several 
towns, to make choice of such for your Grand Jurors, Tythingmen, 
&c., as are men fearing God, men of truth and fidelity, men of wis- 
dom equal to the trust committed to them, and have the interest of 
religion at heart — who will carefully inspect the manners of the peo- 
ple, and bring the transgressors to open shame and punishment : I 
say, unless you are careful and conscientious in this, all our laws for 
the reforming of the manners and morals of a corrupt people are 
insufficient, and our law-makers labor in vain. 



119 

" Oh, that there were such an heart in this people to fear God and 
keep his commandments ; and to exert themselves in their several 
capacities so to promote the peace and prosperity of our Church and 
State ; to put up cries to our ftithers' God, that he would pour out his 
spirit of repentance and reformation on their degenerate offspring. 
Then the Lord our God will be with us, as he was with our fathers, 
and never leave us nor forsake us." 

In 1720 he delivered the first sermon ever preached in 
Shrewsbiuy. 

During his ministry " The Marlborough Association " was 
formed, consisting of six or eight of the neighboring clergymen. 
Of this Association Mr. Breck was a leading member, and his 
house was the usual place of their meetings. 

The best proof of his fidelity is found in his works. In the 
course of his ministry of twenty-seven years, there were two 
hundred and eighty-six persons admitted to his church, and one 
thousand and seventy-seven received the rite of baptism. And 
what furnished better evidence of his wisdom and prudence 
than any thing else, is the fact, that in 1727 and 1728, when 
many churches were rent in twain by what was denominated 
Newlightism, he continued to keep every thing quiet in his 
parish. He knew enough of human nature, and of the order of 
Providence, to be sensible that there would be times in which 
the human mind would be specially called and awakened to 
subjects of a religious nature ; and instead of opposing this gen- 
eral spirit of inquiry, or of calling in others to increase the 
flame, he wisely took the whole matter into his own hands, and 
guided the inquirers in his own town ; and, without any con- 
vulsion, during these two years, added one hundred and two to 
his church. If ministers would learn not to oppose any spirit 
of awakening, when the minds of their people are alive to the 
subject of religion, but would guide and lead it in its true chan- 
nel ; if, instead of calling in foreign aid to awaken an interest 
in religion by artificial means, they would preach with earnest- 
ness the simple doctrines of the meek and lowly Jesus, they 
would do more towards placing their churches on the finn basis 
of the Rock of Ages. 

The influence of Mr. Breck over his people was highly salu- 
tary. When he came to the place, he found them in a state of 



120 

distraction ; but under his ministry these animosities were for- 
gotten, and his flock seemed desirous of dwelling together in 
unity. Thus, with the characteristics of a good citizen and a 
good minister, he administered to their temporal and spiritual 
welfare ; and, by precept and example, impressed upon them a 
truth too often overlooked or forgotten, that he who loves God 
must love his brother also. He was sincerely beloved by his 
people, who, during his last sickness set apart a day for fasting 
and prayer for his recovery ; several of the neighboring minis- 
ters being present and assisting in that solemn service. But 
their prayers did not prevail. He died January 6, 1731, in the 
twenty-eighth year of his ministry, in the midst of his days and 
usefulness, being forty-nine years of age. 

A handsome Monument was erected to his memory, near that 
of his predecessor, containing a somewhat lengthy inscription 
in Latin, which has been thus translated into English. As it 
appears to contain a just representation of his character, we give 
it entire. 

" Beneath this stone are deposited the mortal remains of the truly 
Reverend Robert Breck. His immortal part hath ascended to 
heaven, to join the innumerable company of angels, and the spirits of 
the just made perfect. 

" He was by nature a man of acute intellect, capacious mind and 
sound judgment, together with singular mental resolution. As to his 
attainments, he was eminently skilled in the learned languages, famil- 
iar beyond the common measure with polite literature ; and what to 
others was difficult, he by the power of his mind and close application 
to study, accomplished with ease. Thoroughly versed in every depart- 
ment of theology, and truly orthodox in sentiment, he was a Scribe in 
every respect instructed unto the Kingdom of Heaven, 

" The duties of the pastoral office in the church at Marlborough, 
over which the Holy Ghost made him overseer, he discharged faith- 
fully and assiduously, in peace and with great reputation for twenty- 
seven years. 

••' He was a skillful and able asserter of the doctrines of Revelation, 
and of the worship and discipline of the New England churches. He 
was a counsellor in cases of difficulty, both public and private, of dis- 
tinguished uprightness and consummate prudence. He was a sincere 
lover of his friends, his country, and the whole church of Christ. 



121 

" In a word, he was a model of piety, and every social virtue, and 
of moderation in regard to earthly things. 

" In the severe pains of his last sickness, his patience had its per- 
fect work ; and his departure, if not in triumph, was full of hope and 
peace. 

" Bom December 7, 1682 — Died January 6, 1731. 
" Even the prophets do not live forever." 



CHAPTER V. 

ECCLESIASTICAL MATTERS, &c. 

Several Gentlemen invited to become their Minister, and declined — Mr. Kent 
settled — Charged with Heresy — Leaves the Place — His subsequent His- 
tory and Character — Difficulty in agreeing upon a Successor — Two Fasts 
appointed — A Young Men's Association — Rev. Mr. Smith settled — Peti- 
tion to set off the Indian Plantation as a Town — The East part desire to be 
made a Town — Marlborough remonstrates, and the Petitioners defeated — 
Great Drought — Ecclesiastical Matters an important part of Town His- 
tories. 

After the death of Rev. Mr. Breck, the people seemed 
destined to trouble and disappointment in their ecclesiastical 
affairs. The choice of a successor kept the town in a state of 
excitement for two years. They found it difficult to agree 
upon a candidate, and more difficult to find one who would 
accept their call. Mr. Stephen Sewall, Mr. John Blunt, Mr. 
William Hobby, Mr. Philemon Robbins, and Mr. Samuel 
Rogers, were successively invited to become their pastor, and 
declined. At length, on the 21st of August, 1733, Mr. Ben- 
jamin Kent was, by a vote of the church and town acting 
together, invited to settle with them on a salary of one hun- 
dred and eighty pounds per annum, in bills of public credit, to 
rise or fall, according to their value in silver, which was then 
twenty shillings per ounce. They also voted him a settlement 
of four hundred pounds, two hundred to be paid within six 
months from the day of his ordination, and the other two hun- 
dred within one year from the time of the first payment. 

Mr. Kent accepted the invitation, and was ordained October 
23, 1733. He was a graduate of Harvard College in 1727. 
Soon after his settlement, strong doubts arose respecting his 
orthodoxy. Benjamin Woods, one of the leading members of 
the society, charged him with being " a professed Arminian," 
and said that his want of orthodoxy had made " a great noise 



123 

almost over all the Province." This opposition increased, and 
on the 4th of February, 1735, a Council was convened, which 
found him unsound in the faith. They set forth that he held 
" dangerous opinions with respect to the great and important 
Scripture doctrine of the Trinity ; " that he " denied an abso- 
lute Election, and asserted a conditional one on the foresight of 
good works ; that infants came into the world free and clear of 
original- guilt." It also appeared that "he had said in his 
preaching that the fundamentals of religion were plain and 
easy ; were not, never were, and never could be disputed ; 
because they were of a moral nature ; " which declarations the 
Council pronounce to be " false, and to have a dangerous ten- 
dency to lessen our regard for revealed religion." They also 
find that he had said " that there were several answers in the 
Assembly's Catechism which had not a word of Scripture to 
support them." They further charge him with using " profane 
and filthy expressions." The Council therefore adjudge that 
Rev. Benjamin Kent be suspended from preaching the word, 
or administering the holy sacraments, until the 2Tth of May 
next ensuing. 

Whatever may be thought of these charges of heresy at the 
present day, they were at that period deemed all-important. 
To deny the doctrines of the Trinity and unconditional Elec- 
tion, was regarded by our forefathers as a " damnable heresy," 
and to dissent from the Assembly's Catechism was an olfence 
scarcely less than that of rejecting the Bible itself. Professors 
at that day did not seem to realize that charity was greater than 
faith or hope ; nor had they fallen into the modern error, that 
one system of faith was just as good as another; and that 
morality was all that the gospel required. While, therefore, we 
dissent from the rigid notions of our ancestors, it becomes us to 
guard against the other extreme, into which many at this day 
are prone to run. 

Mr. Kent probably closed his ministry with this decision of 
the Council, and left the church in a divided state. He brought 
an action against the town for the £-100 voted him as a settle- 
ment ; and the case, after a protracted litigation, was decided in 
his favor. He afterwards removed to Boston, where he com- 
menced the practice of law, and became celebrated for his 
eccentricity and wit. He was a man of active mind, ardent 



124 

and impulsive, and somewhat reckless, especially in his declara- 
tions. He was far from being ministerial, either in word or 
deportment ; though Dr. Franklin, who knew him well, bore 
testimony to his benevolence and honesty, and said of him : 
" If he had any hypocrisy, it was of that inverted kind, with 
which a man is not so bad as he seems to be." 

John Adams said of him : '' Kent is for fun, drollery, humor, 
flaunts, jeers, contempt. He has an irregular, immethodical 
head, but his thoughts are often good, and his expressions 
happy." 

At the breaking out of the controversy with Great Britain, 
Mr. Kent was an ardent whig, and a fellow-laborer with Otis, 
Hancock, Samuel and John Adams, Q,uincy, Gushing, Warren, 
and other patriots. In 1776, he wrote a letter to John Adams, 
then a member of the Gontinental Gongress, which is so char- 
acteristic of the man, and so expressive of his feelings, that I 
will give the following extract, which contains all but a per- 
sonal apology for writing : 

" Boston, 2ith of April, 1776. 
" Brother Adams : 

" What in the name of common sense are you gentlemen of the 
Continental Congress about ? A few words and spiteful is my maxim, 
that is, what is so called. St. Paul, though sometimes a little inclined 
to toryism, Avas a very sensible gentleman, and he expressly damns 
the fearful as well as the unbelieving. And though I know all your 
counsels are overruled by the "Wonderful Counsellor, and our chicane, 
(I allude to the last pitiful Address to the King,) nay, our downright 
blunders, are and have most happily been overruled for the good of 
our most righteous cause, and I have no doubt the same happy Gov- 
ernment will continue ; but that same overruling Providence orders 
that I should Avrite this, I wont say (though you may) insignificant 
letter. It appears to me, from a hundred things which I have no 
need to mention to you, that it is as certain that the Colonies will be 
wholly divorced from that accursed kingdom, called Great Britain, as 
that there will be any eclipses of the sun or moon this year, 

" Pray tell the fearful of your members, if you have any such, and 
prove to them, that a separation, first or last, must be the necessary 
consequence of a hundred facts that have turned up already ; then you 
will have nothing to do but to convince them that the present time to 
make a final Declaration of Independence, is the best. But as I know 
you must come to it, I think the same of you as I should of a sinner 



125 

who 1 knew would repent of his sins before he dies. 80 that I am 
perfectly resigned to whatever your great little gods shall do. Foras- 
much as the Lord reigns, I Avill rejoice. One thing 1 would rely upon, 
that is, that Congress will tolerate all religions, both natural and re- 
vealed, and establish none ; and I have infallible proof that it is your 
duty, viz., that the Lord of lords and God of gods doth the same 
thing. Farewell." 

Thus did the ardent and active mind of Mr. Kent lead him 
to foresee the final separation of these Colonies from the parent 
country, even before most of the leading men were prepared to 
make snch a declaration. But the most inexplicable portion of 
his history is, that he left the State subsequently, with the 
loyalists, and went to Hahfax, where he died, 1788, at an 
advanced age. 

It is difficult to reconcile the fact of his going off with the 
tories, with his previous professions and conduct. The most 
rational explanation is this. One of his daughters had married 
Samson Slater Blowers, who joined the loyalists, and retired to 
Halifax. Mr. Kent had become advanced ui life, and probably 
went to Halifax to enjoy the society of his daughter, rather than 
to aid or comfort the enemy, whom he formerly professed to 
despise. But the conduct of men of his character and tempera- 
ment cannot always be explained on any rational principles. 
Impulsive and erratic, he was liable to do at one time what he 
would condemn at another ; and as such men rarely succeed in 
life, they are apt to become morose, and sometimes desperate. 
The history of the world shows that political sins are the most 
difficult, not only to deal with, but to ex})lain. 

After Mr. Kent left Marlborough, a succession of troubles 
ensued. In order to harmonize the views and feelings of the 
people, the town voted, June 26, 1735, to set apart a day for 
fasting and prayer to guide them in the choice of a minister ; 
and Rev. Mr. Prentice of Lancaster, Rev. Mr. Cotton of New- 
ton, Rev. Mr. Cook of Sudbury, and Rev. Mr. Parkman of 
Westborough, were chosen " to carry on the Fast aforesaid." 
After this day of humiliation and prayer, several attempts were 
made to agree upon a minister ; but no one could be found who 
would suit both the church and the town. Failing in all their 
efforts at agreement, the town was called together to devise 
17 



126 

some measure to heal their unhappy differences. At this 
meeting, held May 18, 1737, the following vote was passed : 
" Voted, That Thursday, the ninth day of June next, be 
kept as a day of fasting and prayer by the town, to humble 
themselves before God, under the present frowns of Divine 
Providence in the disappointments we have met with, in our 
endeavor for the settlement of a gospel minister among us : 
and to seek direction of Heaven in that great and weighty 
afi'air ; and voted that Rev. Mr. Williams of Weston, Rev. Mr. 
Webb and Rev. Mr. Cooper of Boston, and Rev. Mr. Cook of 
Sudbury, be desired to come and assist in carrying on the 
solemnities of said day. and to give their advice in our present 
difficulties, respecting the settlement of a gospel minister among 
us." 

After the observance of this day, an invitation was extended 
to Mr. Daniel Bliss, and two invitations to Mr. Samuel Cook, — 
all of which were declined. Warned by the past, the people 
resolved not to settle a man of doubtful orthodoxy ; and for 
that purpose they qualified their respective calls by a proviso, 
" that he be sound in the faith upon examination, and shall 
give us a confession of his faith before ordination, and continue 
to be our minister as long as he prove steady in the belief of 
the doctrines contained in his confession, and of good conversa- 
tion." Several unsuccessful efforts were made to come into 
some arrangement in the choice of a minister. The church 
and town acting separately, like the two branches of a legisla- 
ture, the wishes of the one were frequently negatived by the 
vote of the other. In this way they were kept in a state of 
hostility to each other. In fact, in all such cases the church 
was pretty sure to defeat the wishes of the town. The church 
exercising the prerogative of moving first, could bring before 
the town such a candidate as they pleased : and after voting, as 
a church, in the selection of a candidate, they being voters in 
the town, could vote with their fellow-townsmen in ratifying 
their own doings. But the town being the more numerous, 
could defeat the candidate brought forward by the church, 
though they could not coerce the church in the nomination of 
a candidate. This ecclesiastical usage, to which our fathers so 
strictly adhered, was in some cases a source of great contention 
in many of the towns. 



127 

But while the older portion of the people were at variance 
about selecting a minister, and consequently were destitute of 
a settled pastor, it is gratifying to know that the yonng men of 
the place, feeling the need of more religious instruction, edifica- 
tion, and spiritual guidance than they then enjoyed, associated 
together, and entered into a covenant, the leading objects of 
which are thus set forth in the covenant itself. 

" That we will, with God's leave, meet together every TiOrd's 
day in the evening, and on the evenings of Thanksgiving and 
Fast, to carry on among ourselves religions worship, to pray to 
God, to sing his praises, to read his word or some practical 
discourse, and to conclude with prayer ; -and while we continue 
together, our conversation shall be savory, and suitable to the 
end proposed by us in our meeting together. That when we 
break up our religious exercises, we will directly return to our 
several homes, and nothing but what is extraordinary shall 
divert us therefrom." 

About thirty young men entered into this association, and no 
doubt were improved thereby. At any rate, their example 
might teach their fathers at that day a practical lesson of union, 
and furnish a model for many young men at this day, who 
spend their evenings in a manner less rational or improving. 

After being for about four years, not only like sheep without 
a shepherd, but like other animals which worry and annoy one 
another, a better feeling seemed to prevail. 

" At a meeting of the town of Marlborough, regularly assem- 
bled, December 24, 1739, It was put to vote whether the town 
were ready to come to a choice of a minister to settle among 
them ; and it passed in the affirmative. Then the church 
withdrew, and made choice of Mr. Aaron Smith for their min- 
ister, and brought said choice before the town for their con- 
currence. 

" It was put to vote, whether the town would concur in the 
choice of Mr. Aaron Smith for their minister as above, and it 
passed in the affirmative." 

At the same meeting they agreed to offer Mr. Smith a salary 
of eighty pounds a year, in bills of credit of the new tenor, 
or two hundred and forty of the old ; " provided he prove 
sound in the faith upon examination, and give in a confession 
of his faith, agreeably to the Confession of Faith of the Con- 



128 

gregational Churches of New England, so long as he shall 
continue of such faith, and of good conversation ; reasonable 
allowance being made npon said bills being of more or less 
value." They also voted a settlement of four hundred pounds, 
old tenor — one hundred to be paid within six months after his 
ordination, and one hundred a year from said first payment, till 
the whole sum be paid ; " provided he continue qualified as 
aforesaid." 

Mr. Smith accepted the invitation, and was ordained June 11, 
1740. His settlement gave peace to the town, so far as a 
minister was concerned. But the old remark, that misfortunes 
seldom come singly, was fully realized in their case. For while 
the people were contending, and one said, I am of Paul, and 
another, I am of Apollos, a feeling of alienation, founded upon 
sectional jealousies, was growing up, and furnishing seed for 
that full harvest of sectional strife, the bitter fruits of which 
have since saddened many a heart. 

Certain gentlemen in the easterly part of the town, were 
desirous of being set olf as a separate township, as will be seen 
by the following petition : — 

" To the freeholders and other inhabitants of the town of 
Marlborough, in town meeting assembled, February 5, 1738. 

"The petition of sundry inhabitants of the easterly part of said 
town, humbly sheweth : — That your petitioners have expecta- 
tion that we and others, y^ inhabitants of the said easterly part 
of said town, shall be set oif a separate township. What we 
address you for, gentlemen, is, that you would return us our 
part of the money that we shall pay towards the settlement or 
gratuity to a minister, and likewise our part towards ordination 
cost and charges, if we shall be set otf as abovesaid within 
three years after the above date ; and if we shall not within the 
term of three years, yet if we shall within the term of seven 
years, that you would return us half of y^ said gratuity and 
ordination cost — and as in duty bound shall pray, &c. 

" Joseph Taylor, Joseph Baker, Benjamin Goodale, 

John Weeks, Ebenezer Hager, John Holland, 

Jonathan Barnes, Nahum Newton, Jabez Ward, 

Samuel Witt, Sen., Samuel Witt, John Taylor. 

Uriah Newton, Joseph Bush, 



129 

" The question being put whetlier y^ prayer of y* witlnn 
petition be granted under the following restrictions, viz., no 
part of y* ordination charge be returned, nor settlement, unless 
y* town's money be hiring and carrying on y* public service of 
y* pulpit there, at y* times within specified. Passed in the 
affirmative." 

But this action, on the part of the town, did not long give 
satisfaction. In June, 1743, Samuel Witt, John Hapgood, and 
others residing on the Indian plantation, petition the General 
Court that that portion of Marlborough be set off as a distinct 
parish or town. They represent that they reside far from the 
meeting-house ; that it is " vastly fatiguing " to attend meeting ; 
that they have an " entire aversion to itinerants and exhorters, 
who may take occasion to go from house to house," if they had 
no meeting among them. They also state that they have tim- 
ber and other materials for a meeting-house. On this petition 
the Court sent out a viewing committee. 

In the mean time, a remonstrance was sent to the Court, 
signed by Simon Maynard, Jonathan Barnes and others, in 
which they state that the petitioners are not all voters, and that 
it would be three times as far for some of those living upon the 
plantation to go to meeting, as it is at present. 

In January, 1743, Uriah Eager, Jabez Ward, John Weeks 
and others, petition that the easterly portion of the township 
may be set ofi" from Marlborough, and erected into a separate 
town. While these two petitions were pending, one for a town- 
ship formed from the Indian plantation, and the other from the 
easterly or south-easterly portion of the town, Simon Maynard, 
Joseph Baker, Uriah Eager and eighteen others, memorialize the 
General Court — in which memorial they state, that they are 
utterly opposed to setting off the Indian plantation as a separate 
precinct, unless the most easterly part of the town be annexed 
to it, and that with the consent of their neighbors, the inhabi- 
tants ; notwithstanding some of them had already petitioned 
for the same. They further showed their moderation and good 
sense, by saying that the opposition and lasting contention 
which would result from such a measure would " render our 
lives uncomfortable, and hinder our grace." 

In September, 1744, the town, by a committee, consisting of 
Edward Barnes and John Warren, responded to these petitions 



130 

by setting forth that the meeting-house was situated on the very 
territory the petitioners on the Indian plantation asked to have 
set off ; and that a considerable number of inhabitants upon the 
territory would be less accommodated by being severed from 
Marlborough, than they are at present ; and that there would be 
others left in the old town, as far from meeting as those who 
are urging their case before the Court. These several papers 
were referred to a committee, which reported in favor of grant- 
ing the prayer of the petitioners, with certain limitations : but 
the Court refused to adopt the report. 

Thus ended the controversy for the division of the town ; but 
the same principle showed itself in another form. The peo- 
ple in the northern and eastern part thereof presented, for the 
consideration of the inhabitants, the subject of building two 
meeting-houses, so that the inhabitants in every part of the 
town might be accommodated. But the voters wisely rejected 
the proposition. In the mean time they made such arrange- 
ments in their meeting-house, as were necessary to accommo- 
date all the people with seats. In this way they succeeded in 
keeping the town together ; though the feeling of East and 
West part, seemed to be somewhat deeply seated in the breasts 
of many of the inhabitants. 

In 1749, a severe calamity befell the Colony by a drought, 
attended in many places with swarms of devouring insects, 
which caused great distress in New England. Many brooks 
and springs were dried up. The first crop of grass was short- 
ened to a tenth part of what had usually been mown ; and 
some of the inhabitants were obliged to send to Pennsylvania, 
and others even to England, for hay. In this general calamity, 
Marlborough shared to the full extent. Feeling their depend- 
ence upon Him who gives or withholds the early and latter 
rains, as seemeth good in his sight, the 15th of June was set 
apart as a day of public fasting and prayer, on account of the 
extreme drought. Mr. Smith preached two sermons on that 
day, which were printed *' at the earnest request of his hearers " 
— copies of which are preserved with the church records. The 
following is an extract from the Appendix. 

" The heat and drought daily increased, until not only the 
ground was chapt, but the corn which clothed the vallies was 



131 

fainting, and on the point of sinking into the earth. The trees 
languished and died ; the brooks dried up ; the smaU fisli so 
perished, that the rivers stank ; yea the air. by long stagnation, 
became so putrid and unfit for respiration, that mankind were 
in danger of being suffocated. In this extremity, when every 
countenance gathered paleness, for all things appeared dark 
and dismal, and in consternation men stood gazing one upon 
another, wisely inquiring, wherefore God's anger burned towards 
them in such a tremendous manner : I say in this very critical 
juncture, the Lord wrought graciously for his people on the 6th 
of July : that memorable day Almighty God compassionated his 
people, and caused us to behold his great Power in relieving us, 
when reduced to the lowest ebb New England ever saw. 
'Twas in the very instant when all hope was ready to fail, that 
the Father of rain sent plentiful showers, and so refreshed the 
parched earth, and recovered the perishing fruits, and destroyed 
the insects, that the earth yielded more than a competent supply 
for the necessities and comforts of life." 

In 1756, the subject of taking down the old meeting-house 
and erecting two new ones, was again brought before the town. 
But instead of entertaining the proposition, the town " voted to 
repair the present meeting-house on the foreside and the two 
ends, by making new window-frames and casements to slip up 
and down, and glaze it with sash glass, set in wood,* and to 
new clabbord the foreside and the two ends, and make new 
doors and steps at the doors ; and to accomplish said work, Mr. 
Thomas Brigham, Dca. Andrew Rice, Capt. Joseph Howe, 
Capt. Daniel Barnes, and Capt. Ephraim Brigham, were chosen 
a committee to cause the same to be done." 

And to show the feeling which existed, and the strong desire 
which prevailed to render their present house convenient and 
acceptable, several young women petitioned the town that they 
might be permitted to make some improvements in the internal 
arrangement of the house ; whereupon, it was " voted that 

* " Sash glass, set in wood," &c. The kind of glass generally used at that 
day was a small light, about four by six inches, set in lead, with bars crossing 
the window to hold the lead in its place. The form of the lights was that of a 
Rhombus, or an equilateral Ilhomboid, its greatest diameter being placed perpen- 
dicularly in the window. Such, undoubtedly, was the glazing of the meeting- 
house up to 17'56. 



132 

Mary Ward, Elizabeth Harrington, and Dorothy Burnap, and 
others whom they shall admit, may build a pew in the front 
gallery where a seat now is, and set in it during the town's 
pleasure." The town went on, from year to year, improving 
their meeting-house — erecting porches, glazing the back side, 
and even " colouring " the house to make it attractive. These 
repairs upon the meeting-house have a significancy other than 
the mere improving of the building. It was a sort of back fire 
to the movement of the easterly part to be set off as a separate 
town, or to have two houses erected. 

The town historian is frequently charged with dwelling upon 
trifles ; but those who bring this charge are hardly aware that 
the character of a town, like that of an individual, is best 
learned by its minute acts, where the motives and springs of 
action have full play, and where the ma'sk of dissimulation 
costs more than the object to be attained. Another charge 
brought against the local historian is, that he devotes too much 
of his space to ecclesiastical aff"airs — to building meeting- 
houses, and settling and dismissing ministers. This charge 
also arises from a misconception of the subject. In the early 
settlement of New England, their ecclesiastical affairs occupied 
a more conspicuous place than they do at present. Then the 
minister exerted a controlling influence, not only in religious, 
but in civil matters ; and to omit ecclesiastical affairs in the 
history of a town, would be passing over what the people held 
most dear, and omitting the very subject which most engrossed 
their attention, caused their severest trials, and drew forth their 
most fervent prayers. 

Who could write the history of Salem Witchcraft, without 
bringing in the discipline of the church ; or even the settle- 
ment of New England, without touching upon the religious 
motive which prompted the settlement itself? In the history 
of the Pilgrims, Elder Brewster is quite as important as Miles 
Standish ; and any work would be incomplete which did not 
place both of them in a prominent position. 

A Town History, going back to the early settlements, would 
be as defective without the minister and the meeting-house, as 
a History of Rhode Island would be without Roger Williams. 
Let no one, therefore, say that the settlement of the minister, 
the building of the meeting-house, the decision of the ecclesi- 



133 

astical council, or the gathering of the church, are events 
which can be overlooked in the history of a town. These 
things filled a large space in the contemplation of our fore- 
fathers ; and their most chastened enjoyment, as well as their 
most bitter feuds, grew out of these very subjects. People 
at this day are hardly aware of the prominence of ecclesiastical 
matters in our early history. The great idea of the age was 
the religious idea. To build up a religious Commonwealth 
was the great object, and hence the right of suffrage was con- 
fined to professors ; and men were not only required by law to 
support the minister, but to attend upon his preaching. In 
faithfulness, therefore, the historian is compelled to devote a 
considerable portion of his page to ecclesiastical matters, in 
order to present the spirit of the age, and 

" Catch the manners living as they rise." 
18 



CHAPTER VI. 

THE FRENCH AND INDIAN WARS. 

Soldiers in 1722-1724 — Campaign in 1741 — Capture of Louisburg — Capt. 
Howe's Company, 1746 — Companies in 1757 — Soldiers in 1746 — Soldiers 
in 1748 — Soldiers in 1754 — in 1755 — in 1756 — Soldiers who march to the 
relief of Fort William-Henry — Soldiers in 1758-1759-1760 — Importance 
of the French Wars — Their Bearing upon our Civil and Religious Institu- 
tions — Wars Overruled for Good — Our present Insurrection. 

We have seen in the preceding chapters, that the inhabitants 
of Marlborough have been exposed to the horrors of Indian 
wars, and that these evils have been, in several instances, brought 
to their own doors. We propose to narrate, in this chapter, 
other wars which, though they have been more distant, have 
not been less exhausting ; and though the women and children 
have been more secure, the male portion of the population have 
been more exposed. Marlborough furnished a large number of 
men in every campaign, from 1722 to the peace of 1763. Of 
the early campaigns there are no full rolls of companies extant, 
and consequently we can give no list of the men belonging to 
this town. From a few fragments of rolls which we have been 
able to find, we learn that William Ward was a sergeant in the 
service in 1722, and Thomas Butler in 1723. In 1724, Robert 
Hunt, Henry Allen and Jesse Howe, of Marlborough, are found 
upon the rolls. 

In 1741, the English Government fitted out an expedition 
against the Spanish West Indies, Cuba being the principal 
object. Massachusetts furnished five hundred men ; and such 
was the fatality from disease, and other causes, only about fifty 
ever returned. Marlborough must have had some men in that 
unfortunate expedition. But the rolls are believed to be lost. 
Darius Wheeler is the only Marlborough man, of whose service 
we have any direct evidence. 



135 

In 1744, England declared war against France ; which in- 
volved the Colonies in great trials and dangers. The following 
year the memorable expedition agahist Cape Breton was under- 
taken, which resulted in the capture of Louisburg. As Massa- 
chusetts Colony furnished 3,250 men, Marlborough must have 
had her complement of soldiers in that expedition. But as the 
rolls are said to have been sent to England as vouchers, no list 
of Marlborough men can be found. The obituaries of the town 
contain the following : " Bezaleel Morse died at Cape Breton, 
January 12, 1745, aged 25 years." He was undoubtedly among 
other soldiers, from the same town, in that service. 

Encouraged by the success at Louisburg, Governor Shirley 
designed the general reduction of Canada. This brought the 
French and Indians upon our frontiers ; and though they did 
not penetrate as far as Marlborough, soldiers were called from 
this place to more exposed towns. We have no rolls of the 
service, but have record evidence that Capt. Joseph Howe, of 
Marlborough, who commanded a company of horse, was ordered 
with his company to No. 4, (now Charlestown, N. H.) and that 
on the 3d of August, 1746, he had an engagement with the 
Indians. Ephraim Brigham was his Lieutenant. We cannot 
state the number of his men, nor whether any were lost in the 
engagement ; but as they petitioned to be remunerated for 
horses lost in the battle, it is highly probable that some of the 
men shared the same fate. 

The peace of 1748, which terminated this war, was little 
more than a truce, for digesting and maturing more extensive 
plans of operation. Hostilities which were commenced in 1754, 
called to the field, on the following year, three or four thousand 
men from Massachusetts. It is foreign to our purpose to give a 
detailed account of the operations in this war; they will be 
alluded to only in connection with the Marlborough men called 
into sei'vice. The more recent events of the Revolution, and its 
immediate effects upon our destiny as a people, have thrown the 
French and Indian wars into the shade. And yet it is undoubt- 
edly true, that the toils and hardships, the sacrifices and suffer- 
ings, endured by the New England Colonies, were greater in 
these wars than they were in the Revolution. The only relief 
in this case consists in the fact that Great Britain, to a consider- 
able extent, bore the pecuniary burden in these earlier wars. 



136 



The sacrifices and hardships of the " old French wars," as our 
fathers used to denominate them, are so httle understood by the 
people at this day, that we propose to give, as far as we are 
able, the names of the men from this town, who were engaged 
in that service, thereby showing the part the town took in them. 

Marlborough, like other towns, furnished a large number 
of men. The rolls of that service, originally imperfect, are 
in many cases lost, and in others very much dilapidated, so 
that any thing like a complete and perfect list of the men 
cannot be given. But enough have been found to show the 
hardships and dangers to which our citizens were exposed ; 
especially when we consider that this service was in a great 
degree in the wilderness, at all seasons of the year, and against 
an artful and wily enemy, inured to toil and destitution, and 
whose mode of warfare kept the troops constantly upon the 
watch. 

Some idea of the danger which was apprehended at that day 
appears in the fact that the General Court required the whole 
people to be organized — those who were able-bodied and active, 
to be ready for any distant service, while those who were 
exempt from age, or other causes, were to be organized as an 
Alarm List, and be ready for any exigency at or near home . 
The very fact of the " Alarm List " shows that the danger was 
regarded as imminent, and that the crisis demanded extraor- 
dinary efforts. 

Two large companies were organized in Marlborough in 
1757, with the addition of the alarm men ; and as the rolls 
give us the fullest list we have of the inhabitants of the town 
at that time, they have been transcribed. 



Capt. J. Weeks, 
Ens. Robert Baker, 
Sergt. Ezra Howe, 
" Eliakim Howe, 
" Josiah Howe, 
" Micah Newton, 
Corp. Simon Howe, 
" John Shattuck, 
" Jesse Bush, 
" Francis Weeks, 



Capt. J, Weeks's Company. 

Nathaniel Smith, Jr., 
Peter Howe, 
Micah Bush, 
Amazial Knight, 
Thomas Walkup, 
Fortunatus Eager, 
Solomon Bush, 
Joseph Goodale, 
Stephen Brigham, 
Jonathan Goodale, Jr., 



Winslow Brigham, 
John Taintor, 
John Davis, 
Joseph Townsend, 
Uriah Newton, 
Daniel Hayden, 
Nathan Goodale, Jr., 
Ebenezer Eames, 
William Morse, 
Robert Eames, 



Daniel Bayley, 
Uriah Newton, 
John Priest, 
Samuel Robbins, 
Joseph Bush, 
Jonathan Eag^er, 
Samuel Sherman, 
John Johnson, 
Robert Sproal, 
Kendall Pearson, 
Edmund Wilkins, 
Aaron Mason, 
Stephen Morse, 



137 

Amasa Cranston, 
Ebenezer Hartshorn, 
Silas Barnes, 
Abel Ray, Jr., 
Josiah Hayden, Jr., 
Jonas Morse, Jr., 
Solomon Wheeler, 
Josiah Morse, 
Josiah Stow, 
John Brown, 
Levi Goodnow, 
Uriah Eager, Jr., 
John Stow, Jr., 



In addition to this list, the following 
tached to the Company. 



Uriah Eager, 
Josiah Goodnow, 
John Bruce, 
Nathaniel Ilarthon, 
John Morse, 
Daniel Harrington, 
Eleazer Hager, 
Josiah Potter, 



Nathan Goodale, 
Ephraim Maynard, 
Solomon Barnard, 
Nathaniel Falkner, 
Josiah Wheeler, 
John Hapgood, 
Seth Howe, 



Solomon Harthon, 
David Newton, 
John Weeks, Jr., 
James Russell, Jr., 
Bayley Eager, 
Asa Ray, 
Solomon Hayden, 
Josiah Winn, 
Fortunatus Barnes, 
Asa Este, 
Charles Brooks, 
Abraham Alexander, 
Joseph Wheeler, Jr. 

alarm men were at- 



David Smith, 
William Newton, 
Josiah Wilkins, 
Gideon Smith, 
Timothy Baker, 
Sanmel Stow, Jr., 
Simon Ross. 

Samuel Witt, Clerk. 



Company under Col. Jlbraham 

Col. Abraham Williams, John Barnes, Jr., 
Lieut. Jesse Rice, Frederick Barnes, 

Ens, Abraham Rice, Abraham Barnes, 

Sergt. Thomas Howe, Solomon Barnes, 
" Benj. Brigham, Moses Barnes, 
" Sam'l Stevens, Jr., John Bartlett, 
" Jacob Felton, Timothy Bigelow, 
Corp. Stephen Howe, Silas Jones, 
" Ithamar Brigham, Timothy Jones, 
" Asa Brigham, Adonijah Knapp, 
" Noah Beaman, Edmund Larkin, 
Drum. Francis Amsden, John Beals, 



Jonathan Brigham, 
George Brigham, 
Noah Brigham, 
Antipas Brigham, 
Paul Brigham, 
Peter Bent, 
Jonathan Barnes, 



Alexander Boyd, 
William Barnes, Jr., 
Benoni Baker, 
Abraham Carley, 
Samuel Carley, 
John Eager, 
Solomon Eager, 



Williams. 

David Felton, 
Elisha Felton, 
Archelaus Felton, 
Silas Gates, 
Solomon Goddard, 
John Goddard, 
Benjamin Howe, 
Abner Howe, 
Abraham Howe, 
Simeon Howe, 
Adonijah Howe, 
Jonathan Howe, 
Joseph Howe, 
Phinehas Howe, 
Pelatiah Joslin, 
Samuel Joslin, — 
Ichabod Jones, 
William Eager, 
Barnabas Mathews, 



138 



Paul Mathews, 
Daniel Maynard, Jr., 
Isaac Morse, 
Caleb Newton, 
Ebenezer Phelps, 
Joseph Witherbee, 
Caleb Winchester, 



Silas Wheeler, 
John Wessen, Jr., 
William Williams, 
Joseph Wilson, 
Robert Wilson, 
Benjamin Rice, 
Caleb Rice, 



Rediat Stewart, 
Samuel Ward, 
Alpheus Woods, 
Moses Woods, 
David White, 
Manning Sawin, 
Aaron Woods. 



Attached to this Company was the following alarm list 



Rev. Aaron Smith, 
Capt. David Barnes, 
Lt. John Wessen, 
Ens. David Ward, 
Dr. Andrew Rice, 
Jonathan Loring, 
Benjamin Woods, 
Dr. Jeremiah Robinson, 
Dr. Benjamin Gott, 
Jabez Rice, 
Zerubbabel Rice, 



Nathan Rice, 
Gershom Rice, 
Joseph Brigham, 
William Goddard, 
John Hudson, 
Hezekiah Maynard, 
Daniel Warren, 
Abraham Howe, 
Asa Howe, 
Joseph Williams, 



Moses Williams, 
Jonathan Taintor, 
Abraham Joslin, 
Gershom Bigelow, 
Adonijah Church, 
Jonathan Wilder, 
Ebenezer Howe, 
William Barley, 
Jonathan Jones, 
John Barnes. 

Larkin Williams, Clerk. 



The above lists contain the names of the principal men of 
active years in Marlborough, in 1757. It was from these lists, 
in a good degree, that the soldiers who served in the French 
wars were taken. The fact that in the alarm list is found the 
name of the clergyman of the town, shows the exigency of the 
times, and the danger which was apprehended by the whole 
community. Nor was this sense of danger confined to a single 
town, or the patriotism of Rev. Mr. Smith peculiar to him. 
The clergyman of Westborough, and other towns, having a 
common interest, and feeling a common danger with the rest of 
the people, cheerfully enrolled themselves, that they might take 
part in the defence of what we hold most dear — our homes and 
firesides. 

That the present inhabitants of Marlborough may realize, in 
some degree, the hardships which were endured, and the 
dangers which were dared by their patriotic sires, and how 
many of them were called to the field in defence of houses and 
homes, which we possess in quiet and in peace, the following 
lists, gleaned from fragmentary and imperfect rolls, are pre- 
sented — premising that they fall vastly short of the whole 
number in the service. 



1139 

In 1745, in the expedition against Louisburg, as we have 
already stated, we have no rolls of the service, and are able to 
present but a single name — that of Bezaleel Morse, who died at 
Cape Breton. 

In 1746, Daniel Warren and Nathaniel Eames were taken 
prisonei-s at Fort Massachusetts, in Berkshire County, and car- 
ried to Canada. Amasa Cranston was in the service the same 
year. 

In 1748, Nathaniel Smith, John Cook, Elias Witt, Seth Hud- 
son, Gershom Newton, Samuel Grant, Abner Cranston, Abra- 
ham Ray, William Taint, Jotham Marble, Timothy Newton, 
Ebenezer Cranston, and John Brown were in the service. 

In 1754, we are able to give the names of Abner Cranston, 
Abel Ray, William Hunt, Jonathan Marble, Timothy Newton, 
Ebenezer Cranston, and Seth Hudson. 

In 1755, John Hudson, Samuel Grant, John Bruce, Silas 
Shadwick, Jacob Howe, John Size, Edmund Brigham, Roger 
Bruce, Levi Goodnow, Samuel Howe, Daniel Moody, and Na- 
thaniel Rugg were among the men engaged in their country's 
cause, who hailed from Marlborough. 

In 1756, Gershom Newton, Samuel Grant, Abijah Berry, 
Stephen Cook, Nathaniel Smith, John Gold, Thomas Alexan- 
der, Aaron Mason, Benjamin Barrett, Phiuehas Wilkins, Elias 
Witt, William Manning, and Darius Hudson are found upon 
the rolls. During the same year, Capt. William Williams was 
in the service at No. 4. with the following men, of Marlbo- 



rough. 






Ens. Daniel Barnes, 


Solomon Barnes, 


Elisha Hudson, 


Joseph Wheeler, 


Samuel Hapgood, 


Ebenezer Wright, 


Jonathan Howe, 


Hastings Warren, 


Jonas Newton, 


Archelaus Felton, 


Moses Dickinson, 


Ebenezer Russell, 


John Brown, 


Joseph Eager, 


Daniel Ward, Jr., 


Benjamin Bruce, 


Levi Howe, 


William Ward. 



The year 1757 was memorable for the fall of Fort William- 
Henry, and other operations at the Lakes, and a large number 
of troops of the Colony were called out. Several men from 
Marlborough were in the regular service at that time. Capt. 
Arbuthnott, who was in the fort at the time of its surrender, 
hailed from Marlborough. Zebadiah Bush, John Hudson, 
Jonathan Goodale, James Russell, Abner Cranston, David 



140 



Crawford, John Gold, William Manning, Daniel Harrington, 
and Thomas Walcntt were in what might be denominated the 
regular service. Besides these men, two companies marched 
to the relief of Fort William-Henry ; one under the command 
of Capt. Samuel Howe, who was in service three months, and 
the other under the command of Lieut. Stephen Maynard. 
Capt, Howe's Company consisted of the following men : — 



Capt. Samuel Howe, 
Lieut. Tho's Williams, 
Ens. Asa Hapgood, 
Sergt. Edward Howe, 
" John Patterson, 
" Jotham Bellows, 
Clerk William Seaver, 
Corp. Joseph Parminter, 
" Thomas Mason, 
" Robert Smith, 
" Clark Gibbs, 
Benjamin Howe, 
Richard Cheevers, 
John Johnson, 
Josiah Childs, 



Micajah Rice, 
Lerry Lee, 
Jonathan Partridge, 
Moses Leonard, 3d, 
James Hamilton, 
Benjamin Yates, 
Leonard Webb, 
Silas Harthorn, 
John Willis, 
Jonathan Knight, 
Seth Metcalf, 
Benjamin Felton, 
Peabody Howe, 
Jacob Switcher, 
Micah Rice, 



Joseph Hall, 
James Millholland, 
John Crawford, 
Joseph Stone, 
Micah Harthorn, 
Ebenezer Fletcher, 
John Lebaracan, 
John Wilson, 
Josiah Farnsworth, 
Joseph Robinson, 
John Henry, 
Cyrus Rice, 
William Caruth, 
John Hudson. 



The Company mider Lieut. Maynard was composed of the 



following men : — 

Lieut. Stephen Maynard, 
Qr. Mas. Hezekiah Rice, 
Ephraim Brown, 
Ross Wyman, 
Gideon Howe, 
Elisha Keyes, 
Samuel Bigelow, 
Joshua Stone, 
Robert Baker, 
Micah Newton, 
John Shattuck, 
Jesse Bush, 
Samuel Witt, 
Nathaniel Smith, 



Timothy Baker, 
Levi Goodnow, 
Jabez Rice, 
William Stone, 
Abijah Gately, 
Darius Hudson, 
John Butler, 
Thaddeus Fay, 
Benjamin Taintor, 
Joseph Grant, 
Nathaniel Stone, 
Ebenezer Perry, 
Timothy Bigelow, 
Solomon Barnard, 



Amaziah Knight, 
Josiah Bruce, 
Abiel Bush, 
Thomas Walkup, 
John Parker, 
Ebenezer Harthorn, 
John Brown, 
Charles Brooks, 
James Eames, 
Kendall Pearson, 
Josiah Winn, 
Daniel Bayley, 
Ezra Howe, 
Pompey, a negro. 



In 1758 and 1759, great efforts were made to raise a force 
sufficient for the reduction of Canada. In the absence of any 
correct records, we can only glean a few names ; nor is it easy, 
in many cases, to fix the year of the service, as some of the rolls 



141 



contain no date but that of the final settlement of the pay-roll. 
The following names of Marlborough men are found upon the 
rolls ; but as the name of the town is in very many cases 
omitted on the record, I have confined myself to names where 
the residence is expressly stated, and give the following list, 
Avhich must fall much short of the true number. 



Solomon Howe, 
Joseph Goodale, 
Silas Brown, 
Nathaniel Smith, 
Levi Goodnow, 
David Goodnow, 
Thomas Brooks, 
John Henry, 
Thomas Joslin, 
William Barnes, 
John Verry, 



Samuel Grant, 
Abner Cranston, 
Elijah Hudson, 
Mattliew Laws, 
Daniel Newton, 
Elisha Hudson, 
Isaac Joslin, 
David Crawford, 
Robert Seaver, 
David Boynton, 
David Cook, 



Barnabas Mattiiews, 
Joseph Taiiiter, 
John Parker, 
Elias Witt, 
John Size, 
Moses Hayden, 
John Newton, 
Benjamin Rugg, 
Thomas Williams, 
Lt. Joseph Chadwick. 



Some of the above list wore in service in ITOO and in 1762. 

In 1760, Captain William Williams, of Marlborougli, was out 
with a company composed of men from several towns. Hemy 
Haskell, of Lancaster, was his Lieutenant. Tlic following were 
the men from Marlborough. 



Samuel Barnes, 
Moses Dickinson, 
Joseph Eager, 
Elisha Hudson, 
Ebenezer Knight, 



Jonas Newton, 
Ebenezer Russell, 
Hastings Warren,* 
Daniel Barnes, 
Joseph Witherbee, 



Jonathan Howe, 
Archelaus Felton, 
John Brown, 
Benjamin Bruce, 
Sanmel Stanford. 



It will be seen by the foregoing lists, that in some instances 
the same name appears several times. This arises from the 
fact that the individuals mentioned were in the service in diifer- 
ent years, and sometimes in ditierent campaigns the same year. 

To some, this catalogue of names may appear dry and unin- 
teresting. But it is due to the memory of our fathers, that 
their names and their services should be recorded, so that we, 
who are enjoying a rich inheritance, may know to whom we 
are indebted for these blessings, and may realize the awful 
price at which our liberties were purchased. It is also im- 
portant to show the spirit of the times, and the condition of the 



* Died in the service. 



19 



142 

community at that period, to know the number of men which 
were called from the quiet and safety of home, to encounter 
hardship, and to be exposed to the secret ambush, or "to jeop- 
ardize their lives in the high places of the field." 
. In fact, " the old French war,"' as it was generally denomi- 
nated by our fathers, was a very important period in our colonial 
history ; and no narrative of our early towns would be perfect, 
which did not present these wars, in more or less detail. Their 
history at the time was written in blood, and that blood cries to 
us from the ground, to show the bearing of their toils and suf- 
ferings upon our civil and religious institutions. It was a con- 
test between Protestant England and Catholic France for the 
possession of a vast territory in America, and so involved, in a 
good degree, the religious character of the country. 

The bearing of the French war upon our civil institutions is 
equally apparent. England had already put forth the claim of 
authority to legislate for the Colonies " in all cases whatsoever; " 
and the Colonies, while they denied that right, had declared 
their willingness to defend his Majesty's possessions, to the 
utmost of their ability, both by their purses and their swords. 
This war showed the sincerity of their professions, and their 
ability to defend their own rights. These contests with the 
French and Indians taught them the art of war, developed a 
martial spirit, and so prepared them for the events which were 
before them. It is hardly saying too much to affirm, that but 
for the French and Indian wars, the Revolutionary struggle 
could not have been prosecuted to a successful termination. 

In the plan of Him who "rules in the armies of heaven, and 
does his will among the inhabitants of the earth," these wars 
were links in the great chain of causes, which led us from a 
state of Colonial vassalage to that of National independence. 
The men who had defended their own country against the 
veteran troops of one European power, would feel confidence in 
their ability to defend it against the veteran troops of another. 
Those who had served under Pepperell, at the capture of Louis- 
burg, and under Abercrombie and Amherst, naturally supposed 
that their services would be appreciated, and their rights respect- 
ed by the Parliament they had served ; and their experience in 
the art of war, under these commanders, and under Putnam and 
Rogers, satisfied them, that if their rights were not respected 



143 

by others, they could be vindicated by themselves. And the 
gallant conduct of the men at Lexington, and the bold stand at 
Bunker Hill, were the legitimate fruits of their past experience ; 
and the raw troops at the opening of the Revolution were em- 
boldened by the recollection of past events, and by the presence 
of those who had fought the battles of the mother country. 
The neglect and indignity with which the Colonial officers, 
who were generally the leading men in their respective towns, 
had been treated by the officers of the Crown, naturally created 
in their minds a strong aversion to British nde. So that, in 
various ways, the French wars were the harbingers of the Rev- 
olution, and the school in which our fathers learned the use of 
arms. Whoever, therefore, studies liistory in its principles, and 
considers results as growing out of their legitimate causes, will 
by no means overlook the " old French wars." 



CHAPTER VII. 

THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

The Stamp Act — Measures of Defense — Non-importation and Non-consump- 
tion of Taxed Articles — Marlborough's Response to the Town of Boston — 
Instructions to their Representative in 1773 — Resolutions on the alarming 
state of Public Affairs — Covenant of Non-importation — Instructions to 
Representative — Increase of Ammunition — Organization of the Militia — 
Minute Men raised and drilled — Taxes to be paid to Provincial Treasurer — 
The Causes of the Revolution — The Tories — Henry Barnes, Esq. — He is 
visited by two British Officers — Dismission of Rev. Mr. Smith — Assault 
upon his House — Primitive Manners — Warning out of Town. 

The toils and suffering of the Colonists during the French 
wars, and the readiness with which they seconded all the plans 
of Parliament to extend the dominion of Great Britain in 
America ; the promptness with which they had acted in coun- 
cil, and the bravery they had displayed in the field ; the devo- 
tion they had manifested to the mother country, and the im- 
portant services they had rendered her, created a strong claim 
upon England to respect their rights. They had shown their 
readiness to expend their treasures freely, and to pour out their 
blood like water to defend his Majesty's possessions, and to 
acquire such further territory as would give security to these 
settlements ; and had thus showed themselves loyal, justly 
entitled to the rights and immunities of British subjects, and 
even the lasting gratitude of the Crown. But these lessons 
were lost upon the corrupt ministry which then reigned in 
England. 

On the peace of 1763, instead of favoring the Colonies for 
their valuable services. Great Britain seems to have regarded 
this peace as a favorable opportunity to reduce the Colonies to 
a more perfect subjection to her arbitrary and despotic sway, by 
commencing her odious system of taxation. The first in the 
series of her oppressive measures, was the Stamp Act, Avhich 



145 

was passed in 1765. By this Act the people were required to 
purchase blanks for all notes, bonds, &c,, bearing the Royal 
stamp, in order to give validity to those instruments. This 
tax, while it was a matter of but little consequence to the com- 
mon people, was quite severe upon men of business.* 

This Act was virtually resisted and annulled by the people 
of the Colony ; and other odious impositions were about to be 
made. The Legislature of Massachusetts took the alarm, and 
in 1768 petitioned the Crown for a redress of griev^ances. They 
also addressed a circular to the other Colonies, requesting their 
co-operation in measures for redress. In all the movements in 
I'avor of liberty, the town of Boston, being the most oppressed, 
took the lead. They addressed letters to the other towns in 
the Province, asking their co-operation, and inviting them to 
send delegates to meet them for consultation. 

In answer to their call, Marlborough responded favorably, as 
appears by the record. " The town came into the following 
vote, that it is their opinion that what the town of Boston has 
done respecting the present difliculties, is proper, and have 
accordingly chosen Mr. Samuel Witt to meet the committee 
of Boston, at the time and place named and proposed. — Marl- 
borough, September 19, 1768." 

The oppressive acts of the British ministry drove the people 
to measures of self-defence, and among these measures were 
the non-importation and non-consum])tion of taxed articles. 
When this resolution was taken by the people of the Province, 
Boston, at which the hostile blow was principally aimed, in the 
true spirit of patriotic self-sacrifice, agreed to adhere to the 
recommendation of the people, and discontinued the importa- 
tion, sale or consumption of such articles. Other towns in the 
Province came into the same agreement. Marlborough spoke 
out plainly in support of freedom's cause ; nor did she spare her 
own citizens, who adhered to a traffic which was calculated to 
strengthen the hands of the oppressor, and reduce the people to 
a state of bondage. 

At a meeting of the citizens of the town, held March 29, 
1770, to act on the following article — " To see whether the 

* By this Act, a ream of bail bonds, stamped, cost £100 ; a ream of common 
printed ones before had been sold for £15. A ream of stamped policies of in- 
surance cost £190 ; a ream of common ones, without stamps, £20. 



14G 

town will do any thing to strengthen the hands of the mer- 
chants in their non-importation agreement," John Warren was 
chosen Moderator, and Hezekiah Maynard, Peter Bent, and 
Robert Baker were elected a Committee, who, after dne 
deliberation, submitted the following spirited and. patriotic 
Report ; which was adopted by the town, transmitted to the 
Boston Committee, and published in the Evening Post, a news- 
paper of the day. 

" The Inhabitants of the Town of Marlborough, in the County of Middle- 
sex, being legally assembled in town meeting, and taking into consideration 
the deplorable and embarrassed state of America, the many distresses it 
lies under, the violent assaults that are made upon our invaluable rights and 
privileges, the unconstitutional and alarming attempts that are made by an 
aspiring, audacious, arbitrary power, to strip us of our liberties and all those 
glorious privileges, civil and sacred, which we, through the kind indulgence 
of Heaven, have long enjoyed, and to bring us into a state of Slavery under 
such Tyrants who have no bounds to their aspiring ambition, which leads 
them to the perpetration of the blackest crimes, even to the shedding the 
blood of innocents ; an instance of which we have very lately had in the 
horrid, detestable and sinful Massacre committed in the town of Boston ; 
and considering that our estates are not sufficient to satisfy the avarice of a 
growing arbitrary power, but that the lives of the harmless subjects must 
fall a sacrifice to the rage and fury of blood-thirsty and mercenary wretches. 

" We think that notwithstanding the unsuccessfulness of the many con- 
stitutional methods which have been taken to regain to us the free and full 
enjoyment of our constitutional rights and privileges ; yet it is now abso- 
lutely necessary to use our greatest eflTorts in a constitutional manner to 
recover our inherent rights, and preserve us from a state of Slavery and 
Misery ; and it so plainly appears that the Non-Importation Agreement, 
entered into by the truly patriotic Merchants in Boston and other places on 
the continent, so directly tends, with other methods that are taken, to the 
restoration of our liberties, which we have held so sacred and dear to us, 
which cost our predecessors an immense treasure to secure, not only to 
enjoy them themselves, but to hand them down to their posterity : we are 
astonished to find that a number are at this critical time so sordidly detached 
from the public interest, and are so selfish and impudent, as to stand out 
and not comply with the Non-Importation Agreement, or break the same 
when entered into, and remain obstinate and bid defiance to their country, 
when entreated by the Committee of Merchants in the most salutary 
manner to enter into and abide by the same ; and as they continue to 
practice those things that tend to ruining and enslaving their country and 
posterity, we think it necessary and an incumbent duty on us, to pass the 
following votes, viz. 

" 1. Voted, That we highly approve of the noble and manly-spirited con- 
duct in those Merchants who have agreed (and firmly abide by the same) not 



147 

to import goods from Great Britain, till the revenue acts are repealed, sac- 
rificing their own private interest to the public good. 

" 2. Voted, The thanks of this town to the town of Boston, for the noble, 
spirited resolutions and measures they have taken to promote the cause of 
Liberty. 

"3. Voted, That we will, as far as lies in our power, in and by every 
constitutional way, encourage, strengthen, and support those Merchants and 
others, who have discovered such a patriotic spirit as by the Non-Importation 
Agreement, appears. 

"4. Voted, That those who have not come into or do not abide by the 
Non-Importation Agreement, and those that buy goods of the importers, or 
purchase goods of those traders who have them of the present importers, 
are enemies to their country and posterity, and that they ought to be treated 
as such. 

"5. Voted, That we ourselves, or by any from or under us, will not 
directly or indirectly purchase any goods of John Bernard, James and 
Patrick McMasters, William Jackson, John Mein, Nathaniel Rogers, The- 
ophilus Lillie, John Taylor, Anne and Elizabeth Cummings, all of Boston ; 
Israel Williams, Esq., and son, of Hatfield, and Henry Barnes, of Marlbo- 
rough aforesaid, (being importers,) until a general hnportation slial! take 
place, or they come into the Non-Importation Agreement of the Merchants 
to their satisfaction. 

" 6. Resolved and Voted, That the names of those who purchase goods of 
the importers, or of those who buy of importers, shall be made public, as 
far as we have the knowledge of them." 

At a subsequent meeting, Hezekiah Maynard, Peter Bent, 
Robert Baker, Alpheus Woods, and Moses Woods, were chosen 
a committee to see that the above votes were carried into 
effect. 

As the controversy between Great Britain and tlie Colonies 
was the absorbing theme of the day, we might naturally expect 
that the inhabitants of Marlborough, who were alive to the 
spirit of liberty, would not content themselves with a single 
expression of their sentiments. They had suffered too severely 
in the Indian wars, and had sacrificed too much in defense of 
the Colonies, to be willing to yield all they had so dearly 
bought, to the demands of the British ministry. Consequently, 
we find them ready, at all suitable times, to avow their attach- 
ment to the cause of civil and religious freedom, and their 
readiness to co-operate with their brethren in any measures 
calculated to promote the welfare of their country. 

At a meeting held the 21st of December, 177i?, Hezekiah 
Maynard, Alpheus Woods, Edward Barnes, Jonas Morse, and 



us 

Daniel Haninglon, were chosen a committee to draft instruc- 
tions to their Representative, and also to correspond with the 
Committee of Correspondence of Boston. At an adjourned 
meeting, held January 1, 1773, the Committee submitted a 
somewhat detailed Report and Resolutions ; and although we 
may not be ready to endorse their grammar and rhetoric, we 
must admire the patriotism they manifest ; and though the 
Report blends the Lord and the people of Boston in one period, 
contrary to the rules of composition, we believe, after all, that 
the latter were moved by the spirit of the former, so that they 
were not far out of the way even in their composition. At any 
rate, the Report and Resolutions show that they cared more 
for sound principles than for correct taste ; and that there are 
crises when patriotic feelings rise above the rules of rhetoric. 
The Committee report as follows : 

" That Slavery has something very shocking in its nature, and that deatli 
perhaps is more eligible than such a state ; and once the mournful tragedy 
is completed, and then to awake and have our eyes opened, would be intol- 
erable that it was once in our power to have prevented it. 

" We desire, with the sincerest returns of gratitude to the Head of Influ- 
ences, to acknowledge His goodness in spiriting so great a part of our 
Metropolis to endeavor the recovering and maintaining, by all lawful means, 
our rights and privileges, both civil and sacred, which he has (notwithstand- 
ing our sins) favored us with, and do now return our thanks to you for the 
noble exertion lately made in the cause of liberty, and at the time hope you 
will persevere in all constitutional ways for the full recovering and main- 
taining the same, with an entire confidence on the Lord of Hosts, who has 
always supported the church and the people against their tyrannical and 
barbarous enemies, and who we hope will now appear for us, and in his own 
righteous way grant the salvation needed for his people, for which we hope 
glory will be given to him who is the Captain of our Salvation. So with all 
respect we are with you, true and loyal in common with Great Britain, the 
Constitution of which we desire in all lawful ways to maintain. 

" Therefore do Resolve 1, That the inhabitants of this earth are naturally 
free, and while in a state of nature have a right to do themselves justice, 
when their rights are invaded. 

" 2. Resolved, That mankind have a right and power to form themselves 
into society, make compacts, covenants, and just laws, so as to form a good 
and equitable rule of government. 

"3. Resolved, That it is the opinion of this town that the British nation 
have enjoyed, perhaps, as complete a system of government as any nation 
whatever ; agreeable to and by which the king Avas as much bound as the 
people, and had no longer right by the constitution and his coronation oath 
to the Throne, than during the time of ruling according to the same ; and 



149 

in extreme cases, when a prince breaks through and treads down the fun- 
damental laws of his country, and destroys the noble constitution thereof, 
and sets himself to destroy liberty and property, with the Holy Religion of 
God's covenanted people, and all that is near and dear unto them, and in- 
stead of supporting vJHue and holiness, doing justice and loving mercy, and 
walking humbly with God, he grows haughty, unjust, and a tyrant, using his 
arbitrary power, introducing Popery and all manner of debauchery and 
wickedness, that free-born people are not required by the religion of Jesus 
Christ to submit themselves as slaves to such irreligious tyranny, but to 
preserve and defend themselves, and recover and support their laws and 
liberties, civil and religious ; and this must be admitted by all who approve 
that happy Revolution, brought about by the hand of Divine Providence, 
A. D. 1088. 

" 4. Resolved, As the opinion of this town, that the whole British Empire 
is under very alarming circumstances, in that the constitution of the nation 
being in part broken over, the rights of the people invaded, great inroads 
made upon their liberty in an arbitrary manner, their freedom, property, and 
privileges, civil and religious, being wholly taken from them, notwithstanding 
all the constitutional remonstrances and petitions that have been made use of. 

" 5. Resolved, That the British Colonies in America, and this Province in 
particular, have a right to all the immunities, privileges and liberties granted 
to them by the royal charter and acts of Parliament. 

" 6. Resolved, That tiie people of this Province have ever been a loyal 
people, and have never forfeited their charter rights by any disloyalty what- 
ever, and that they have good right to hold and enjoy their property and 
privileges ; and no power on earth has any just right to alienate them from 
their just owners, without the consent of themselves or representatives. 

" 7. Resolved, That the many acts of Parliament imposing in late years 
duties on this as well as the other Colonies, and the tolerating a Roman 
priest, and appointing papists to high places of trust in the British domin- 
ions, and also establishing the salaries of several of the first men of this 
Province, and also of the Judges of the Superior Court, and making them 
independent of the people, the great extension of admiralty jurisdiction, 
the quartering soldiers upon us in time of peace, the arbitrary demanding 
and the treacherous giving up of Castle William, our chief fortress, the 
shedding innocent blood, as in the horrid massacre in Boston, March 5, 1770, 
all of which is unconstitutional, and carries a bad aspect, &.c. 

" 8. Resolved, That this Province, and every individual town and person, 
separate or together, have a right to petition his Majesty for a redress of 
grievances, according to the Bill of Rights and other Acts of Parliament, 
and that the assertion of a corrupt ministry, a Lord Hillsborough, the Bar- 
onet of Nettlc'iiam, or any other tools of arbitrary power proclaiming to the 
contrary, or their withholding petitions and remonstrances from King and 
Parliament, is denying and withholding justice, and is unconstitutional, and 
deserves our resentment. 

"9. Resolved, That when a people justly complain of illegal acts of 
Parliament, which are contrary to the constitution of the nation, and peti- 
tion the throne in a proper way for relief— to be denied a hearing, and called 
20 



150 

seditious and guilty of treason against his Majesty, as has been the case, is 
totally subversive of the constitution, and a great indication of much cor- 
ruption, and a sign of wicked rulers, and that the glory of such a people 
is departing, or already gone, which calls aloud on such a people to exert 
themselves in the cause of their God and country, for the case is very dan- 
gerous, and there should be no delay in this matter. 

" 10. Resolved, As the opinion of this town, that this Province is in the 
utmost danger of being ruined, and that it is time, yea, more than time, 
to rouse out of security, and to consider of the danger we are in of being 
stripped of the privilege of trial by jury, and deprived of a Council of our 
own choosing and supporting, which is now sought after by those mercenary 
wretches who are so sordidly detached from all good, as that they are 
endeavoring to enslave this country in misery, by stripping the people of 
their Religious Liberty and Property. 

" 11. Resolved, That every town, not only in this Province, but in all the 
British Colonies, and elsewhere in the British dominions, ought to furnish 
themselves with everything necessary that is lawful and commendable in the 
sight of God, in order to save and defend themselves, and regain support 
and secure ourselves, property, liberties and privileges, civil and sacred, and 
that without any further delay." 

These Resolves were unanimously adopted. But the chang- 
ing phases of the controversy required new expressions of opin- 
ion, and the patriots of Marlborough were ready to meet any 
issue that might be made. 

At a meeting in 1773, called for the express purpose of con- 
sidering the alarming state of public affairs, the following patri- 
otic Preamble and Resolutions were adopted : 

" When we reflect upon the peace and harmony that once subsisted 
between Great Britain and the Colonies, we cannot sufficiently regret the 
loss thereof; and when we consider that it proceeds from unconstitutional 
measures adopted not only on the other side of the Atlantic, but by one * 
among us whom the people once were ready to promote to all the places of 
trust, profit, and honor in their power; who has been, nevertheless, using all 
his artifices and cunning to produce an intestinal commotion between us and 
our mother country, and reduce us to a state of slavery worse than death 
itself — Do therefore 

" Resolve, 1st, That all such who are in any ways aiding or assisting in 
imposing any unconstitutional taxes upon us, deserve our resentment, and 
may expect from us no favor or affection. 

" Resolved, 2d, That by an act of the British Parliament, the East India 

* Gov. Hutchinson, whose friendly pretensions to the Colonists had just been 
exposed by the discovery of secret correspondence with the Ministry, in which 
he recommended more stringent measures against the Colonies, is probably here 
alluded to. 



151 

Company are allowed to export certain teas to America, free of duty in Lon- 
don, but subject to a duty payable in America, which we look upon to be a 
scheme laid to catch us in the net they have long set for us. 

" Resolved, 3d, That although our land is very fruitful, yet being taxed 
without our consent, we may be brought to a morsel of bread, or but one 
meal of meat in a week, which is the case with Ireland, a very fertile land ; 
and as our great Lawgiver, and the law of nature, require self-preservation, 
we are determined by no means to submit to such arbitrary measures, 
duties, tythes, taxes, &c., but will unite with our brethren in this and the 
neighboring Provinces, and oppose them to the last extremity. 

" Resolved, 4th, That peace and harmony will never be enjoyed between 
Great Britain and the Colonics, until the interests of both be inseparably 
connected ; which will be accomplished by nothing short of a repeal of all 
unconstitutional acts, and the removal of all sinecures, pensioners, pimps, 
informers and bad governors. 

" Resolved, 5th, That we look upon every person who does not oppose 
the present unconstitutional measures of administration, especially Edward 
Winslow and others, of the ancient and memorable town of Plymouth, who 
without giving one reason, have protested ag'aiust the proceedings of said 
town, as inimical to the interests of America, and ought to be despised by 
all the human race. 

" Resolved, Gth, We return our hearty thanks to our worthy brethren in 
the town of Boston and the adjacent towns, for their noble and spirited exer- 
tions against the attacks of arbitrary power, and stand ready to assist them in 
the execution of their votes and resolves, at a minute's warning. 

" Fated, That the foregoing Resolves be recorded on the Town Book, and 
that the Clerk transmit a copy thereof to the Committee of Correspondence 
of the town of Marlborough, to be forwarded to the Committee of Corres- 
pondence of Boston." 

On the 20th of June, 1774, the inhabitants of the town were 
convened by a warrant from the Selectmen, to act on the fol- 
lowing article : 

" To see what measures the town will come into respecting 
an Act passed by the British Parliament for blocking up the 
Harbor of Boston, and other Acts which have passed and are in 
agitation respecting the Colonies, or the Province of Massachu- 
setts Bay in particular." 

After due discussion, Edward Barnes, Samuel Stow, Alpheus 
Woods, Hezekiah Maynard and George Brigham, were chosen 
a Committee to draw up a Covenant of Non-consumption of 
British goods, for the people to subscribe at an adjourned meet- 
ing. At the adjourned meeting, the Committee presented their 
covenant, which was signed by a great part of the people. 
The conclusion of the meeting is thus described in the Record : 



152 

"After hearing the names of the persons who had not signed 
the said covenant, the town, by a vote, ordered that the persons' 
names who had not signed, or did not sign by the first of Sep- 
tember next, be pubhshed to the world by the Committee of 
Correspondence of this town." 

At a meeting held September 29, 1774, Peter Bent was elect- 
ed Representative, and the town instructed him as follows : 

•' We hereby instruct you that you adherje strictly to the 
Charter of this Province, stipulated and agreed to between their 
Majesties, King William- and dueen Mary and this Province, 
and that you pay no acknowledgment to any unconstitutional 
and new fangled Counsellors, and that you do not give your 
consent to any act or thing that may be construed a tacit ac- 
knowledgment to any of the late oppressive, wicked and unjust 
Acts of the British Parliament, for altering the Government of 
the Province of Massaclmsetts Bay." 

In the iiicix.L ume the town adopted measures to prepare for 
any exigency that might arise. They directed the Selectmen 
" to make an addition to the town's stock of ammunition — 
powder, bullets and flints." They also united with several of 
the neighboring towns, Shrewsbury, Westborough, Northbor- 
ough, Southborough and Grafton, in the choice of field officers, 
and in reorganizing the militia of said towns. 

The town also adopted measures to carry into efl'ect the 
recommendations of the Continental and Provincial Congresses, 
raised a company of minute-men, provided for their drill and 
discipline, and ofl"ered them a bounty, provided they were called 
into service. They also instructed their constables, who at that 
day were collectors of taxes, not to pay the Province tax over 
to the Royal Treasurer, but to the Treasurer appointed by the 
Provincial Congress. And while they were in this manner 
providing for military defense, they were not unmindful of the 
poor, who were brought to a state of great distress by the closing 
of the port of Boston. They agreed to contribute to their sup- 
port, and chose a committee to procure means for their relief. 

In the spring of 1775, the busy notes of preparation were 
heard throughout the Province. In Marlborough, fifty-five 
additional guns, with bayonets, were procured ; drums were 
furnished to the companies ; blankets were procured for the 
minute-men, who were to be paid for the time spent in their 



153 

weekly drill. And while these warlike preparations were going 
on, the town were careful to select some of their most discreet 
and reliable men, to represent them in the General Court. And 
when by the arbitrary act of Gov. Gage, the Legislature was 
prorogued, and no new election was ordered, so that the Gov- 
ernment was about to be abolished, or what was even worse, to 
be swallowed up in the Executive, the people wisely substituted 
a Provisional Congress as a government of the people them- 
selves. In this Provisional Government, Marlborough was rep- 
resented by Edward Barnes, Peter Bent, and George Brigham, 
some of the most substantial, devoted, and patriotic of their 
citizens, who justly represented the sentiment of the town. 

Having brought the civil and political history of Marlborough 
up to the opening of the American Revolution, before entering 
upon that field of hardshi{)s and trials, of patriotic efforts and of 
glorious success, it is well to pause and reflect upon the ques- 
tions at issue, the condition of the American people, and the 
moving principles which prepared them for the contest. In 
these respects, the history of one town is the history of the 
Province. Though there is a lively interest felt in the result of a 
battle, to the philosophic mind this interest is greatly increased, 
when we understand clearly the cause of the war, and the 
principles to be settled by the conflict. It is, therefore, due to 
the present generation, and especially to the memory of our 
fathers, that we present the true issue and the motives by 
which they were actuated in taking up arms against the mother 
country. 

The impression is somewhat general, that the people took up 
arms simply to relieve themselves from a small tax upon tea, 
and a few imported articles. This narrow view of the subject 
does great injustice to our patriot fathers. The subject of taxa- 
tion was not the sole cause of the conflict. Taxation, it is true, 
was one, but only one of the manifestations of arbitrary power. 
The Parliament claimed the right to legislate for the Colonies 
"in all cases whatsoever." This implied not simply the right 
to tax, but to impose any other burden — to command their ser- 
vice in any mad scheme of conquest in any part of the world — 
the right to take away their charter, to alter or annul any of 
their laws — to deprive them of the right of trial by jury, and so 



■ 154 

render their property, their rights, and even their hves insecure. 
In a word, to reduce them to a state of the most abject servi- 
tude. 

The tax upon stamped paper and tea was only a single 
instance of the exercise of despotic power ; but it involved the 
great principle, and was defended by the ministry on the 
ground that the power of Parliament was unlimited, and ex- 
tended to every subject whatever. Our fathers pleaded the 
principles of the English constitution, and maintained that 
they were protected by the doctrines of the Great Charter of 
the realm, and were justly entitled to all the rights and immu- 
nities of English subjects. But the haughty ministry virtually 
informed them that Parliament in America was supreme, and 
the guaranties of the English constitution did not apply to 
dependent Colonies. 

Our fathers saw in the Stamp Act, and the other modes of tax- 
ation, the assertion of that unlimited power, which, if submitted 
to, would reduce them to a state of the most abject slavery. 
Nor was the taxing power the only odious power Parliament 
attempted to exercise in America. They claimed and attempt- 
ed to exercise the right of quartering troops upon the Colonies 
in times of peace, and of making the military paramount to 
the civil power. They also violated the charter granted to the 
Colonists, claimed the right of transporting them to England, to 
be tried for any offense of which they saw fit to accuse them ; 
made the courts of justice dependent upon the Crown alone ; 
and attempted to enforce all these arbitrary laws as interpreted 
by a corrupt court, and passed upon by packed juries, at the 
point of the bayonet. 

And to insure success in this work of oppression, the military 
force at Boston was greatly augmented ; and the subjugated 
condition of that devoted town, foreshadowed the fate of the 
Province. Instead, therefore, of its being a question of mere 
taxation, it became a question of life or death to their civil and 
religious institutions, and to their personal, private rights. With 
such an issue before them, they could not hesitate. Nor was 
the issue one in which they alone were concerned. They 
knew that their children, and those who came after them, 
would be affected by the result of this controversy, and that the 
great cause of human rights was in a manner committed to 



155 

them. Having a posterity to regard, a country to sav^e, a God 
to obey, they chose the path of duty and of right, and hence 
were firm and unwavering in their purpose. 

But though the principle of abstract right was clear, many, 
very many obstacles presented themselves. The right of rev- 
olution, which must be admitted in the abstract, can never be 
urged as a duty, unless there is a reasonable prospect of suc- 
cess in improving our condition and securing a greater good. 
And what were the prospects in this case ? A feeble province, 
almost without arms and munitions of war, against the most 
powerful nation of the earth, then at peace Avith all the 
world, and so in a condition to bring all her mighty energies 
to bear upon her rebel subjects ! Well might the timid fear, 
and the prudent hesitate. No doubt there were men at the 
commencement of the Revolution, who were sincere lovers of 
freedom, and who would willingly have spilt their blood in 
defence of human rights, if they could have seen any reasona- 
ble prospect of success. But seeing nothing but blood and 
carnage before them, and a protracted struggle which must end 
in our defeat and more perfect subjugation, they were from 
principle opposed to the commencement of hostilities. 

Our natural antipathy to the "tories " has undoubtedly led us 
to be too indiscriminate in our censure of the whole of the 
class, who at that day adhered to the royal cause. Tiiat there 
were men who attached themselves to royalty merely for the 
sake of preferment, and fawned before the officers of the crown 
from self-interest, and would be willing to sell not only their 
own birth-right, but the liberties of their brethren for a mess of 
pottage, there can be no doubt ; and our detestation of such 
men can hardly be too great. But removed as we are from 
those perilous times, and enjoying as we do the blessings of 
free government, we can afford to be generous, and are in duty 
boimd to be just in our estimation of that portion of our coun- 
trymen. 

But the existence of loyalists in the midst of society at that 
day, whatever may have been their motives, could not fail to 
be a troublesome element, and must have caused great uneasi- 
ness in the community. To have a spy in our own camj? — 
one who might betray us into the hands of the enemy — is 
naturally regarded as a great calamity ; and even the suspicion 



156 

of being one, must almost of necessity subject such a person to 
the detestation of those whose safety and hves are thus put in 
jeopardy. 

Marlborough seems to have been cursed with at least one 
man, who was known and acknowledged to be a devotee to 
Royalty. We have already seen that as early as 1770, the 
people of the town condemned Henry Barnes* as an importer 
who brought goods into the country contrary to the agree- 
ment of the patriotic and self-sacrificing merchants of Boston 
and its vicinity, and solemnly agreed that they would not trade 
with him. Subsequently, when in 1775 Gen. Gage sent his 

* Though there were several families of Barneses in Marlborough, whose 
descendants are found there at the present day, it does not appear that Henry 
Barnes was in any way connected with these families. Tradition says that he 
came to Marlborough from Boston. He appears to have been a man of some 
note, and a favorite of the loyal Governor, who appointed him one of His 
Majesty's Justices of the Peace for the County of Middlesex in 1766. He is 
denominated an " importer " in the Marlborough Resolutions. He kept a store 
in Marlborough, and appears to have been a man of wealth and enterprise. 

In 1753 he preferred a petition to Governor Shirley, in which he sets forth, 
" That he has lately been at considerable expense and trouble in erecting in 
Marlborough a commodious house, works, and utensils for the distilling and 
maniifacturing of cider spirits, and the same has so far answered his expecta- 
tions, as that besides what has been consumed in the Province, he has distilled 
the same spirit and sent to Boston for exportation between two and three 
thousand gallons, and the same is esteemed by proper judges to be as good and 
wholesome as any spirit now used ; " and prays that he may be licensed to 
retail it in small quantities. Whereupon the Court of Sessions and the Select- 
men of the town were empowered to grant such license. 

Henry Barnes resided in the east village, in the house known as the Cogswell 
house, which he built in 1763. He was a man of considerable property, and 
one of the largest tax-payers in the town. He was the owner of several slaves, 
one of whom, "Daphine," he left in Marlborough, and she was supported out 
of his estate. We have already said that he espoused the royal cause, and at 
the breaking out of the Revolution was found with the enemy. He left Marl- 
borough early in 1775, and repaired to Boston to take shelter under the protec- 
tion of the King's troops. An act was passed in 1778, forbidding all persons 
who had left the State and gone over to the enemy, returning to their former 
homes ; and providing that in case of their return, they should be arrested and 
sent out of the dominion of the United States ; and in case they should, after 
such transportation, return without the leave of the General Court, " they shall 
suffer the pains of death without benefit of clergy." In this act, Henry 
Barnes is expressly mentioned. His property was confiscated. He was in 
England with his family in 1777, and died in London, 1808, aged 84. 

For some of these facts I am indebted to Hon. Lorenzo Sabine, whose 
admirable work on " American Loyalists " (which he is now revising) should 
be in the hands of every student of American history. 



I 



157 

spies to Worcester to sketch the topography of the country, 
they sought his house as a place of refuge, where they supposed 
themselves perfectly safe, as we shall show hereafter. 

The year 1775 opened with a large British force coojied up 
in the town of Boston. The military became impatient, and 
Gen. Gage felt that he must adopt a more active policy to 
satisfy his troops, and to meet the expectations of the ministry. 
He knew that the Province was making military preparations, 
and that they had collected warlike stores at Concord and 
Worcester, and he resolved to take an early opportunity to 
destroy them. Consequently he detailed Capt. Brown and 
Ensign D'Bernicre, two officers of the royal army, '' to take 
sketches of the roads, passes, &:-c., from Boston to Worcester," 
and also from Boston to Concord, preparatory to the contem- 
plated expedition to these towns to destroy the military stores. 
These officers entered upon their duty, and in disguise visited 
both of those places, and sketched the to}X)graphy. In the 
account of the adventure written by D'Bernicre, we learn that 
on leaving Worcester for Boston, they came on unobserved 
until they passed Shrewsbury, when they were overtaken by a 
horseman,* who appeared to examine them very minutely and 
attentively, as if he intended to know them, if he met them 
again ; or be able to describe them, so that they might be 
known by others. After he had taken his observations, he rode 
off in haste, taking the Marlborough road, but they took the 
Framingham road, and returned to Jones's tavern in Weston, 
where they tarried for the night. The next day, though the 
weather was severe, they traveled to Marlborough. 

Their journey thither, and the incidents of that adventure, 
are thus described by D'Bernicre. 

" At two o'clock it ceased snowing, a little, and we resolved to set off for 
Marlborough, which was about sixteen miles off. We found the roads very 
bad, every step up to our ancles ; we passed through Sudbury, a large vil- 
lage near a mile long ; the causeway lies over a great swamp, or overflow- 
ing of Sudbury river, and is commanded by a high ground on the opposite 

* Capt. Timothy Bigelow, of Worcester, sent by the Committee of Corres- 
pondence of that town to observe these strangers, whose martial bearing, not- 
withstanding their caution, betrayed them, Capt. Bigelow communicated their 
probable visit to the people of Marlborough, where they were expected that 

night. 

21 



158 

side. Nobody took the least notice of us, till we arrived within three miles 
of Marlborough, (it was snowing very hard all the while,) when a horseman 
overtook us, and asked us from whence we came — we said from Weston ; he 
asked us if we lived there — we said no ; he then asked where we resided, 
and, as we found there was no evading his questions, we told him we lived 
in Boston. He then asked us where we were going ; we told hira to Marl- 
borough, to see a friend ; (as we intended to go to Mr. Barnes's, a gentleman 
to whom we were recommended, and a friend to the Government;) he then 
asked us, if we were of the army ; we said no, but were a good deal alarmed 
at his asking us that question ; he asked several rather impertinent questions, 
and then rode on for Marlborough, as we suppose, to give them intelligence 
of our coming — for on our arrival the people came out of their houses 
(though it snowed and blew very hard) to look at us ; in particular, a baker 
asked Capt. Brown, ' Where are you going. Master .^' He answered, to see 
Mr. Barnes. 

" We proceeded to Barnes's, and on our beginning to make an apology for 
taking the liberty to make use of his house, and discovering to him that we 
were officers in disguise, he told us that we need not be at the pains of telling 
him, that he knew our situation, that we were very well known, he was 
afraid, by the town's people. We begged he Avould recommend some 
tavern where we should be safe ; he told us we would be safe no where but 
in his house ; that the town was very violent, and that we had been expected 
at Col. Williams's tavern, the night before, where there had gone a party of 
liberty people to meet us. While we were talking, the people were gather- 
ing in little groups in every part of the town [village], 

" Mr. Barnes asked us who had spoken to us on our coming into town ; 
we told him a baker ; he seemed a little startled at that, told us that he was 
a very mischievous fellow, and that there was a deserter at his house. Capt. 
Brown asked the man's name ; he said it was Sawin, and that he had been a 
drummer. Brown knew him too well, as he was a man of his own Company, 
and had not been gone above a month ; so we found we were discovered. 
We asked Mr. Barnes, if they did get us into their hands what they would 
do with us ; he did not seem to like to answer ; we asked him again ; he 
then said, he knew the people very well, that we might expect the worst 
treatment from them. 

" Immediately after this, Mr. Barnes was called out ; he returned a little 
after, and told us the Doctor of the town had come to tell him, he was come 
to sup with him, (now this fellow had not been within Mr. Barnes's doors 
for two years before, and came now for no other business than to see and 
betray us.) Barnes told him he had company, and could not have the pleas- 
ure of attending him that night ; at this the fellow staid about the house, 
and asked one of Mr. Barnes's children, who her father had got with him ; 
the child innocently answered, that she had asked her papa, but he told her 
it was not her business ; he then went, I suppose, to tell the rest of his 
crew. 

" When we found we were in that situation, we resolved to lie down for 
two or three hours, and set off at twelve o'clock at night; so we got some 
supper on the table, and were just beginning to eat, when Mr. Barnes, who 



159 

had been making inquiries of his servant, found the people intended to 
attack us : he then told us plainly, that he was very uneasy for us, that we 
could be no longer in safety in the town ; upon which we resolved to set off 
immediately, and asked Mr. Barnes if there was no road round the town, so 
that we might not be seen. He took us out of his house by the stable, and 
directed us by a by-road which was to lead us a quarter of a mile from the 
town; it snowed and blew as much as I ever saw in my life. However, we 
walked pretty fast, fearing we should be pursued; at first we felt much 
fatigued, having not been more than twenty minutes at Barnes's to refresh 
ourselves, and the roads were worse, if possible, than when we came ; but 
in a little time it wore off, and we got on without being pursued, as far 
as the hills which command the causeway at Sudbury, and went into a little 
wood, where we eat a bit of bread that we took from Barnes's, and eat a 
little snow to wash it down. 

" A few days after our return, Mr, Barnes came to town from Marlborough, 
and told us that immediately after our quitting town, the Committee of Cor- 
respondence came to his house, and demanded us ; he told them we were 
gone ; they then searched his house from top to bottom, looking under the 
beds and in the cellar, and when tfcey found we were gone, they told 
him, if they had caught us in his house, they would have pulled it down 
about his ears. They sent horsemen after us on every road, but we had the 
start of them, and the weather being so very bad, they did not overtake us, 
or missed us. Barnes told them we were not officers, but relatives of his 
wife's from Penobscot, and were going to Lancaster ; that perhaps deceived 
them." 

This rather long extract from the account given by one of 
the parties, not only contains some interesting incidents, but is 
decisive of the political character of Barnes. It also shows the 
spirit of the times, and the feelings by which the people of 
Marlborough were actuated at that period. The Committee 
of Correspondence alluded to above, who attempted to arrest 
these British officers, were Hezekiah Maynard, Alpheus Woods, 
Edward Barnes, Jonas Morse, Jr., Daniel Harrington, William 
Boyd, and Samuel Curtis. The last named gentleman was in 
all probability the doctor to whom reference is made in the fore- 
going narrative, as calling upon Henry Barnes to ascertain who 
his new visitors were. 

The incidents above related reflect no discredit upon the 
town. They simply show that if Marlborough had the mis- 
fortune to have one tory in the midst of them, they had enough 
of the true spirit of liberty to render him harmless ; if they 
had one plant not indigenous to the soil, they had faithful hus- 
bandmen enough to root it up. The tories, in some parts of 
the country, were very troublesome, and very mischievous^ 



160 

giving the enemy information, and supplying them with pro- 
visions. But in Massachusetts they were few in number, and 
were comparatively harmless after the war had actually com- 
menced. Before that period, those who espoused the royal 
cause were great hindrances to the spread of free principles, 
and by their misapprehension, if not misrepresentation, of pub- 
lic sentiment, encouraged the officers of the Crown to adopt 
more stringent measures, and to draw more closely the cords by 
which they hoped to bind us to the car of despotism. But after 
hostilities had actually commenced, and the whole British force 
in the Province was confined to a narrow compass, their oppor- 
tunity for mischief was greatly circumscribed. The siege of 
Boston cut off" all communication between the British and their 
friends in the interior, and so rendered the tories in Massachu- 
setts comparatively powerless — objects to^ be despised rather 
than feared. ^ 

Having brought the general history up to the commence- 
ment of the Revolution, before we enter upon that severe 
struggle, it is well to pause for a moment and take a general 
glance at the events which had transpired and were developing 
themselves in Marlborough. Under the ministry of Rev. Mr. 
Smith, who was settled in 17-40, the town enjoyed compara- 
tive peace, and things passed on smoothly for some twenty 
years. During this period, the " Great Awakening," or Whit- 
field movement, occurred ; and while some churches were 
divided or disturbed, and others severed in twain, there was no 
particular commotion in this town. But a sort of indifference, 
if not dissatisfaction, appeared to be growing against their 
pastor, especially among the younger portion of the commu- 
nity. It was also suspected that in their approaching struggle 
with Great Britain, his sympathies were rather with the royal- 
ists. This suspicion would naturally increase the alienation. 

Mr. Smith being in ill health, the town in several instances 
chose a committee to supply the pulpit, and in granting his 
annual salary, reduced the sum — an indication that there was a 
want of sympathy with their minister, and that they were will- 
ing to give him this tangible hint of their state of feeling towards 
him. But in November, 1771, they brought the subject directly 
before the people, by inserting an article in their warrant, " To 



161 

see if the town will choose a committee to consult with Rev. 
Mr. Smith, to see if he will resign the ministry ; " and though 
the motion was negatived, it was an indication of the state of 
feeling, the ultimate result of which can easily be anticipated. 
This subject was kept before the town several years, and divers 
propositions were made to him by his people. In the meantime, 
his health became impaired, and other supplies were engaged ; 
and finally, in January, 1778, he asked a dismission, and was 
accordingly dismissed by a council, called for that purpose, April 
29, 1778, " on accomit of his infirmity and weakness, which 
greatly afiected his lungs, and voice in particular." As a brother 
of the church, he was recommended to the church in East Sud- 
bury (Wayland) by letter, to which place he removed, and 
where he died, 1781, aged sixty-seven. His daughter married 
Rev. Mr. Bridge, of that place. 

Mr. Smith was a faithful minister, and was generally success- 
ful in his labors. In 17G7, his church numbered 16-4 members ; 
79 males and 85 females. 

A singular event in Mr. Smith's history occurred in 1777. 
Some disorderly and wicked people went to his house in the 
night-time, after he had retired to rest, and discharged two 
loaded guns into his apartment through the window. It was 
not generally supposed that they intended to take his life. He 
had become unpopular as a minister, and being suspected of 
an inclination to the tory cause, it was thought by most people 
that it was done as an admonition to him to ask a dismission. 
The town very justly expressed their condemnation of the out- 
rage, by passing the following Resolution and Vote : 

" Resolved, That the conduct of some ill-minded person, relative to the 
Rev. Mr. Aaron Smith, as mentioned in the fourth article of the warrant, is 
wicked and villainous, and contrary to the peace and good order of the com- 
munity, and is held in abhorrence by the town. 

" Voted, To give £100, lawful money, as a reward to any person or per- 
sons who shall discover those persons (in such a manner as they may be 
brought to legal punishment) who wickedly discharged two loaded guns 
into the lodging-room of Rev. Mr. Smith, or any others who aided or assisted 
therein." 

Mr. Smith resided in the old mansion house, now occupied 
by Mr. William Gibbon. The bullets fired into the house, 
lodged in a beam, and were a few years ago extracted by Mr. 
Gibbon, and are carefully preserved. 



162 

The historian who would paint the spirit of the times, must 
often present things of trifling importance in themselves, yet 
going to show not only the manners and customs, but the habits 
of thought which prevailed among the people. If a will, or an 
inventory of an estate, speaks of a certain quantity of malt, we 
at once recognize beer as a beverage in use among the people ; 
or if a silver spoon is left as a legacy, we know that such 
articles were [rare at that time, and were regarded as some- 
thing extraordinary. Or if we find on any list of household 
effects, a trencher, or wooden plates, we turn our mind's eye to 
the " dresser,^' or shelves attached to the side of the house, 
where we behold not only these primitive articles of table fur- 
niture, but pewter platters supplying the place now filled by 
costly china ware. The warming-pan almost creates a loathing 
for cold sheets, however fine the texture ; and the trundle-bed 
naturally creates a wish that the more obtrusive crib had never 
been invented. The block m the corner, and the form against 
the wall, bespeak a sort of self-dependence, which those who 
rely upon French manufactures can never possess. 

Many of these things are highly suggestive, and let us at 
once behind the curtain, where we see things as they were. 
The high-backed settle reminds us of the currents of fresh air 
which circulate freely through the ceiling, and saves us from 
the necessity of a rotary motion to prevent our roasting on 
one side, and freezing on the other, while before the blazing 
fire, which extends some six feet, and so fills two-thirds of the 
space between the jambs of the huge fire-place. So the checked 
apron, with which the matron and her blooming daughters were 
adorned, carries us through the whole process of domestic man- 
ufacture — the loom, the wheel, the cards, the indispensable 
vessel in the corner, whose chemical properties, though they 
could not make white, black, would nevertheless put forth their 
energies till all is blue. Or if we turn to the field of the farmer, 
and see the breadth of his bean culture, we are almost inclined 
to rush, spoon in hand, to the broad pan or wooden bowl, where 
steams that solid Jluid so congenial to the palate, or to wait the 
full period of "nine days," that we may partake of the "best" 
which the bowl aff"ords. All these things were found in the 
days of which we are speaking ; and if they do not harmonize 
with the age when " luxury is straining her low thoughts to 



163 

form unreal wants," they at least show us that nature's wants 
are few, and that every condition in life has its enjoyments. 

Our fathers had customs of a more public nature, which de- 
serve a passing notice. The custom of "warning out of town," 
prevailed generally in the Province, When a stranger came 
into town to reside, the person into whose family or tenement 
he came, was required to give notice to the Selectmen, of the 
name of the person or persons, the place he came from, his 
pecuniary circumstances, and the time he came to town. 
When these facts were known, the town authorities would in 
their discretion let them remain quietly, or order them to be 
warned out of town. This precaution was taken to prevent 
their gaining a settlement, and becoming a public charge. A 
few specimens from the records will show the practice. 

" John Bruce gave notice to the Selectmen of his taking into 
his house Lucy Barney, on the twenty-sixth of June, 1764. 
Came last from Sudbury ; and she is warned and cautioned as 
the law directs." 

" Dr. Samuel Curtis came to town, June, 1769 ; came last 
from Roxbury. Taken in by widow Dexter." 

" March 28, 1748. Thomas Brigham notified the Selectmen 
of his having taken two children from Southborough into his 
house, both minors. John Beals came thirteen days before 
date, and Elizabeth Beals came six days before date — under 
poor circumstances." 

These specimens show that no regard was paid to age, char- 
acter, or sex, so far as the notice of coming is concerned ; but 
in the warning, or '-cautioning," a discretion was used. 

There was a formality in the process of warning out of town, 
which will ap])ear hi the following example. 

" Middlesex, ss. 

" To Mr. Joseph Howe, Jr., Constable for the Town of Marlborough, in 
said County ; Greeting : 

" In his Majesty's name you are hereby required forthwith to warn the 
several persons hereafter mentioned, forthwith to depart out of the town of 
Marlborough, viz., Abraham Carly and Susanna his wife, and their children, 
viz., Mary, Moses, Joel, Martha and Job; David Fling; Amaziah Knight 
and Jane his wife ; Mrs. Abigail Arbuthnot, and Martha Parminter. And 
to make inquiry into their circumstances, and from whence they came last 
to this town ; 

"Hereof fail not, and make return of this warrant, with your doings 
thereon, as soon as may be, unto the Select-Men. 



164 

" Dated at Marlborough, the Third Day of February, Anno Domini One 

Thousand Seven Hundred and Fifty-five, and in the Twenty-Eighth Year of 

his Majesty's Reign. 

John Warren, 

Samuel Witt, 

John Weeks, ) Selectmen. 

Joseph Howe, 

Ephraim Brigham, 

" Middlesex, ss. March 3d, 1755. 

" In observance of the above Warrant, I have warned all the persons 
above mentioned forthwith to depart out of this town of Marlborough, ex- 
cepting Mrs. Abigail Arbuthnot, who was not to be found. 

" Joseph Howe, Jr., Constable. 
" Entered by Samuel Brigham, Town Clerk." 

Such was the formality of our fathers. All instruments were 
issued in His Majesty''s Name. This form was continued in 
Marlborough, till May, 1776, when the Town Meetings were 
warned in the Name of the Government and People of Massa- 
chusetts ; and after the adoption of the Constitution, in the 
" name of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts." 

While we are treating of small matters, we will notice a very 
good custom set forth in language more expressive than classic, 
in relation to settling the accounts of town officers. A., B. and 
C. were chosen a committee "to call the Treasurer to account." 

Another practice, the perniciotis effects of which are seen at 
the present day, long prevailed in Marlborough ; viz., that of 
narrowing their roads. Scarcely a warrant for a town meeting 
was issued without an article, ' To see if the town will dispose 
of any land within the highways, and give a title of the same.' 
In this way, roads, formerly laid out five or six rods wide, have 
been made inconveniently narrow. 

A private record makes the year 1761 rather remarkable, as 
seen by the following entries : 

•' March 19. There was an earthquake, half an hour past 9 
o'clock at night." 

" October 23. There was a very remarkable wind." 

" Dandelions were out in full blow, the last end of Septem- 
ber." 

"November 1. There was an earthquake, half an hour of 
8 o'clock at night." 

"Another remarkable thing this year was, there was no 
thimder of any value.^^ 



CHAPTER VIII. 

THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION. 

Spectacle of the Rising of the People — Battle of the Minute-Men — Lexington 
Monument — Companies from Marlborough on the 19th of April, 1775 — 
Troops furnished in the Rerolution — Manufacture of Saltpetre — Marlbo- 
rough will sustain a Declaration of Independence with Life and Fortune — 
Bounties offered for Enlistments — Convention at Concord to regulate 
Prices — Constitution formed — Difficulty in raising Money — Pledge of 
Stock to the Soldiers — Depreciation of the Currency — Close of the War — 
Great Sickness — Cold "Winter — Dark Day. 

The American Revolution is one of the most important 
events in the history of our country ; and as that protracted 
struggle brought the energies of our whole people into requisi- 
tion, every municipality, certainly in this State, felt its exhaust- 
ing effects. The public mind had been prepared for the crisis ; 
and when it came, the people showed that they were equal to 
the task of vindicating their rights. We have seen that the 
patriots of Marlborough had been bred amidst alarms, and had 
passed through the long and severe discipline of the Indian and 
French wars ; and in the controversy with Great Britain, they 
had made the solemn declaration, and published the firm 
resolve, that they would stand by their brethren in defense of 
their freedom. They had also backed up their resolutions by 
organizing themselves for any emergency that might arise. 
And with men of the stern integrity, indomitable will, and 
unflinching fortitude of our Puritan Fathers, the resolution 
might safely be taken for the deed. And so it proved in this 
case. For when the intelligence reached Marlborough, on the 
19th of April, 1775, that the British troops had left Boston to 
destroy the military stores at Concord ; that they had wantonly 
fired upon the company of Minute-Men at Lexington, and 
killed several of their number ; the people at once flew to arms, 

22 



166 

and in a few hours, four companies from Marlborough, consist- 
ing of about one hundred and ninety men, were on the march 
to the scene of action ; resolved to vindicate the rights of the 
Colonies, or perish in the attempt. 

The history of the world does not present a more grand and 
imposing spectacle than that of the rising of the people, on the 
19th of April, 1775. It was not a restless population, gathered 
by blind impulse, without a definite motive or design ; not a 
hired soldiery, organized by some bold and daring leader, to 
avenge some personal wrong, or to embark in some mad scheme 
of conquest, in which the perils they bore would be repaid by 
plunder ; nor was it a people goaded to desperation, or reduced 
to the last stages of despair by the iron heel of despotism, 
making their last mighty effort to throw off the yoke they 
could no longer endure ; but it was a cool, voluntary rising of 
a sedate and orderly, intelligent and conscientious people, who 
knew their rights, and "knowing dared maintain them" — a 
people bred to the right of private judgment and the equality 
of men, and who, seeing in their religious creed the great prin- 
ciples of civil as well as religious liberty, were determined to 
defend them, whenever invaded, or whoever might be the 
aggressor. It was the spontaneous rising of a people who felt 
that they were set for the defense of American liberty, and 
were ready to offer their bodies a living sacrifice in the cause — 
realizing, as the patriots of Middlesex County had declared the 
preceding year, " That he can never die too soon, who lays 
down his life in support of the laws and liberties of his country." 

With no orders but their own firm resolve, and with no 
leaders but the high and holy promptings of an enlightened 
patriotism, they flocked to the scene of action, determined to 
vindicate the great principles of freedom, and the rights of the 
American Colonies. They had no vain thirst for military glory ; 
nor did they rally under any invincible chieftain, whose pres- 
ence inspired courage and gave assurance of victory. Neither 
could they rely on that perfection of discipline, and those im- 
provements in the implements of war, which insure success on 
the ensanguined field. In all these respects, they knew that 
the advantage was on the side of the oppressor. But faith in 
the righteousness of their cause nerved their arm, and their trust 
in the Lord of Hosts gave them confidence. 



167 

Such a rising, I repeat, has no parallel in the world's history. 
Our fathers stood as Minute-Men in all parts of the Province ; 
resolved to commit no aggression, but to resist the first invasion 
of their rights. They felt that they were destined to freedom ; 
that they were agents, in the hands of a wise and benignant 
Providence, to work out, in some manner unknown to them- 
selves, a great good to the race ; and that to secure this glorious 
end, they must obey the right, and be the faithful depositaries 
of the freedom committed to their care. Standing in this atti- 
tnde, they could not hesitate. They felt that they had a solemn 
duty to perform, and they must do it — a sacred trust to keep, 
and they must be faithful, whatever might be the immediate 
consequence. 

The battle of the 19th of April was the battle of the Minute- 
Men. Well then has the idea been conceived, of erecting at 
the first battle-field of the Revolution, a Monument commemora- 
tive of this rising of the people on the memorable 19th of April, 
1775. And nothing could be more appropriate than the figure 
of a Minute-Man, to represent the very class of men who, with- 
out hope of fee or reward, flocked to the standard of freedom 
on that occasion. Let the noble enterprise be prosecuted, that 
those who come after us may see, in enduring bronze, a lively 
symbol of a class of men who inaugurated a Revolution the 
happy influence of which has been felt in every quarter of the 
globe.* 

Actuated by such motives, four Companies of Minute-Men 
marched from Marlborough, on the 19th of April, 1775, on hear- 
ing of the march from Boston of the British troops, and of the 
outrage they had committed on the Green at Lexington ; and it 
is due to the memories of such men, that their names should go 
down to posterity. 

* The people of Lexington and vicinity have formed an Association for the 
purpose of erecting a Monument at the first battle-field, commemorative of the 
opening scene of the Revolution. The figure is to be that of a Minute-Man in 
bronze, of from fourteen to eighteen feet in height, standing upon a suitable 
granite pedestal. When it is completed, it will be one of the most tasteful and 
attractive monuments in America. The officers of the Association embrace some 
of the first men in the country ; — Edward Everett, President ; and among the 
Vice Presidents are Robert C. Winthrop, Nathaniel P. Banks, William P. Fes- 
senden, Ichabod Goodwin, Roger S. Baldwin, Millard Fillmore, Robert Stockton, 
Simon Cameron, Thomas Corwin, E. Rockwood Hoar, and others well known 
to fame. 



168 



Roll of Capt. Hoive's Company, ivhich marched on the 19th of Jlpril, 1775, to 
Cambridge, and ivere absent from home sixteen days. 



Cyprian Howe, Capt. 
Araasa Cranston, Lieut. 
Uriah Eager, Ens. 
Solomon Bowers, Serg. 
Robert Hunter, '* 
Ebenezer Hager, «' 
William Hager, 
Matthias Moseman, 
Josiah Wilkins, 
John Baker, 
Abner Goodale, 
Jabez Bush, 
Asa Barnes, 
Hiram Stow, 
Fortunatus Wheeler, 
Aaron Eager, 



Joel Brigham, 
William Speakman, 
Francis James, 
Teter Howe, 
Ephraim Maynard, 
Silas Barnes, 
David Hunter, 
Joseph Miller, 
Simon Maynard, 
Luke Hager, 
Amos Wait, 
Adonijah Newton, 
Jacob Priest, 
James Bruce, 
Joel Barnard, 
Timothy Bruce, 



Nathaniel Bruce, 
Thomas Goodale, 
James Priest, 
Ebenezer Eames, 
William Brown, 
Alpheus Morse, 
Jabez Rice, 
Jonathan Temple, 
Jeduthan Alexander, 
Joseph Baker, 
Nehemiah Howe, 
Abner Dunton, 
Thaddeus Shattuck, 
Frederick Walcutt, 
Timothy Darling, 
Abraham Whitney. 



Roll of Capt. Brigham's Company, which marched to Cambridge, Jlpril 19, 
1775, and icere in the service from ten to thirty days. 



William Brigham, Capt. 
Silas Gates, 1st Lieut. 
Ithamar Brigham, 2dLt. 
Henry Brigham, Serg. 
Noah Beaman, " 
Joseph Brigham, •' 
Ichabod Jones, " 
Thomas Rice, Corp. 
Ephraim Ward, " 
Josiah Priest, ♦' 
Lewis Brigham, <• 
Gershom Rice, Jr. 
Samuel Eames, 
Ephraim Wilder, 
Oliver Hale, 
Simeon Howe, 
Ezekiel Clisby, 



William Loring, 
Rediat Stewart, 
Jabez Bent, 
■ Jonathan Barnes, Jr. 
Samuel Howe, 
Silas Carly, 
Samuel Ward, Jr. 
Isaac Morse, 
James Ball, 
Frederick Goodnow, 
John Bagley, 
Timothy Baker, 
Ephraim Howe, 
Abraham Beaman, 
Robert Horn, 
Luke Howe, 



Lovewell Brigham, 
Reuben Howe, 
Reuben Wyman, 
Jonah Newton, 
Thomas Joslin, _^ 
Phinehas Howe, 
Alexander Church, 
Ithamar Goodnow, 
George Brigham, 
Moses Williams, Jr. 
Willard Rice, 
Samuel Howe, 
Gershom Brigham, 
Jabez Rice, 
Abraham Brigham, 
Abijah Berry, 



Roll of Capt. Barneses Company, ivhich marched to Cambridge, Jlpril 19, 
1775. A portion ivho ivent on the 19th, returned home after a few days, 
and were succeeded by others — some of whom were in service forty days. 

Obadiah Barre, Jonas Darling, 

Levi Fay, Robert Eames, 

William Rice, Abraham Gould, 

Peter Bent, Elizur Holyoke, 

Jonathan Brigham, Asa Witt, 

James Bowers, David Wyman, 

John Baker, Moses Barnes, 



Daniel Barnes, Capt. 
William Morse, 1st Lt. 
Paul Brigham, 2d Lt. 
John Loring, Serg. 
Ephraim Baker, " 
Antipas Brigham, Corp. 
Jedediah Tainter, " 



169 



Jonathan Weeks, 
Ivory Bigelow, 
Nathan Baker, 
Daniel Stevens, 
Isaac Sherman, 
Benjamin Boyd, 
Benjamin Howe, 
Hezekiah Maynard, 
Elihu Maynard, 
Stephen Phelps, 
Daniel Rice, 



Daniel Robbins, 
Moses Roberts, 
Prentice Russell, 
Oliver Russell, 
John Rice, 
John Rice, Jr. 
Robert Saintclair, 
Ephraim Stow, 
John W. Woods, 
Francis Walkup, 
Stephen Felton, 



Thaddeus Howe, 
Dudley Hardy, 
John Lamb, 
Nahum Newton, 
Jabez Rice, 
William Williams, 
Aaron Wheeler, 
John Harrington, 
Francis Morse, 
Heman Stow, 
Benjamin Stevens. 



Silas Gates commanded a company, (perhaps of horse,) com- 
prising men from Marlborough, Northborough, and Southbor- 
ough, which were called out on the Lexington Alarm, April 
19, 1775. Elijah Bellows, of Southborough, was 1st Lieuten- 
ant, and Joel Rice, of Northborough, was 2d Lieutenant of the 
company. The men from Marlborough were as follows : 



Silas Gates, Capt. 
Henry Brigham, 
Francis Morse, 
Luke Howe, 
Thomas Williams, 
Asa Barnes, 
Benjamin Bartlett, 
Abraham Beaman, 
George Brigham, 
Elisha Barnes, 
Uriah Brigham, 
Joel Brewer, 



Alexander Church, 
John Dexter, 
Aaron Eames, 
Matthias Felton, 
Abncr Goodale, 
Aaron Howe, 
Robert Horn, 
Joel Ilager, 
John Kelley, 
Joshua Lamb, 
William Loring, 
Joseph Maynard, 



Ashbel Rice, 
William Goodale, 
Gershom Rice, 
Samuel Gates, 
Quartus Stow, 
Abraham Howe, 
Samuel Ward, 
Moses Williams, 
Joseph Williams, 
Jeduthan Wj-man, 
David Hunter. 



As the organization at that time was imperfect, it is probable 
that the same individuals, in some cases, belonged to different 
companies ; and as the companies were in service for different 
lengths of time, it is probable that some of them, on their com- 
pany's returning home, entered the other company ; this ac- 
counts for the same name, in two or three instances, appearing 
in different companies. 

It is difficult for us, at this day, to realize the state of things 
which existed at that period. The spring of 1775 was unusu- 
ally forward. On the morning of the 19th of April, the indus- 
trious farmers of Marlborough were busily engaged in getting 
in their small grain, or in preparing the earth for planting. 
Before noon, an express messenger brought the tidings of the 



170 



movement of the King's troops. The drums beat ; the alarm 
is sounded ; messengers are sent through the township ; and 
in two or three short hours, over one hundred and eighty effec- 
tive men drop their implements of toil, seize their muskets, 
and are on the march for the scene of action ! And though 
the season was a busy one, which required their immediate 
and constant labor, they remained from their homes and fam- 
ilies ten, fifteen, twenty, thirty, and even forty days ! And this 
number of men turned out, on their own motion, from a town 
of some thirteen hundred inhabitants — being about one-seventh 
of the entire population ! 

Few, if any towns, situated as Marlborough was, can boast 
of a more patriotic rally. And though their distance from the 
scene of action prevented them from joining in the skirmish of 
that day, their going to Cambridge to watch the motion of the 
enemy, and remaining there till a sufficient army was organized, 
shows their devotion to freedom's cause. 

Nor was this all. Early in the same season, an army of 
eight months' men was organized. And though the rolls are 
defective, and full lists cannot now be obtained, the folloAving 
officers and men from this town were in the service — most of 
them for eight months that season, and many of them, subse- 
quently, enlisted for three years : 



Lt. Col. Edward Barnes, 

Capt. Paul Brigham, 
•• Daniel Barnes, 
*' Amasa Cranston, 
" Silas Gates, 

Lieut. Moses Barnes, 
" "William Morse, 
" Obadiah Bruce, 

Simon Adams, 

Jeduthan Alexander,* 

Stephen Allen, 

William Boyd, 

James Ball, 

John Baker, 

James Bowers, 

Elihu MajTiard, 



Hezekiah Maynard, 
William Rice, 
Joseph Miller, 
Paul Newton, 
Daniel Rice, 
John Rice, 
John Rice, Jr. 
David Wyman, 
Peter Bent, 
Jonathan Brigham, 
Abraham Brigham, 
George Bender, 
Artemas Brigham, 
Ephraim Barber, 
Jonas Darling, 
Robert Eames, 



Abraham Gould, 
Frederick Goodnow, 
Neheraiah Howe, 
Elizur Holyoke, / 
Obadiah Johnson', 
John Kidder, 
Ephraim Simonds, 
Daniel Robbins, 
Oliver Russell, 
John Sawin, 
Francis Walkup, 
Asa Witt, 
John W. Woods, 
Reuben Wyman, 
John Wright, 
Moses Robbins. 



* He was killed at Bunker Hill, where a portion of the Marlborough men 
were engaged. They were under the command of Lt. Col. Jonathan Ward and 
Maj. Edward Barnes, of Marlborough. 



171 



Marlborough being on the borders of Worcester County, and 
being partly, at least, organized with towns in that County, the 
Worcester rolls contain many Marlborough men ; and from 
them the following list is gleaned : 



"William Brigham, 
John Barnes, 
ElLsha Barnes, 
Uriah Brigham, 
Joel Babbett, 
Silas Baker, 
Kichard Bradford, 
Henry Brigham, 
Asa Barnes, 
Benjamin Bartlett, 
Abraham Beaman, 
George Brigham, 
David Hunter, 
Joel Hager, 
Edward Knapp, 
"William Loring, 
Francis Measurve, 
Joseph Newton, 
Roger Phelps, 
Ashbel Rice, 
Joseph Robbins, 



John Stow, 
Quartus Stow, 
Samuel Spofford, 
David Sale, 
"William Shield, 
Robert Scott, 
"William Weeks, 
David Wait, 
Asa Witt, 
John Wiggins, 
Joseph Williams, 
Joseph Waters,* 
Joel Beaman, 
Alexander Church, 
John Dexter, 
Aaron Eames, 
Jonathan Crosby, 
Zerubbabcl Eager, 
Matthias Felton, 
Samuel Hudson, 
William Goodale, 



Samuel Gates, 
Luke Howe, 
Aaron Nurse, 
Robert Horn, 
Samuel Kelley, 
Jonathan Lamb, 
Francis Morse, 
Samuel McNair, 
Pomeroy Grove, 
Joseph Pulling, 
Gershom Rice, 
Abraham Howe, 
Peter Stevenson, 
Alexander Watson, 
Thomas Williams, 
Fortunatus Wheeler, 
Samuel Ward, 
Moses Williams, 
Jonathan AVyman, 
Samuel Wyman, 
Samuel Willard. 



In 1777, the following men were drafted out of the Marl- 
borough companies of militia, to serve in the Continental army 
two months : John Sawin, James Bruce, Stephen Baker, James 
Hunter, Ebenezer Howe, Jacob Priest, Zelotus Whitcomb, 
Samuel Hunting, John Barnes, Ashbel Rice, Matthias Felton, 
Reuben Priest, Lovewell Brigham, Jonathan Wyman, Phinehas 
Rice, Jonas Smith, Eli Goodnow, Theophilus Hardy, Elizur 
Holyoke, John Fay, John Gott Brigham, Jason Harrington, 
Joseph Williams, Josiah Newton, Jonas Darling, Robert Eames, 
and John Harrington. 

In 1778, Lt. Jonathan Weeks, Abner Dunton, David Hunter, 
Prentice Russell, Samuel Howe, Jr., John W. Woods, Aaron 
Eager, and Aaron Brigham, were in service three months. 



* Waters was a Scotch Highlander, in the English service, and was sent over with 
others to reinforce Gen. Howe at Boston. The transport arrived after the British left 
Boston, and was captured. Waters came to Marlborough and enlisted into the 
American service, and served in almost every campaign during the war. He married 
in Marlborough, and after the peace made it his place of abode. He died at an 
advanced age, retaining, to the day of his death, the air of a soldier. 



172 



There were various campaigns during the war, but the rolls 
are so confused, imperfect, and defective, that it is exceedingly 
diflicult to classify the Marlborough men who served in them. 
Some were called out for short periods. The following men 
were in different campaigns or expeditions, though they are not 
perhaps arranged in the exact order of time in which they 
served : 

At White Plains were Capt. Amasa Cranston, Edward Wil- 
kins, Abner Goodale, James Gleason, Josiah Wilkins, Robert 
Hunter, Silas Barnes, and Daniel Barnes. 

Among the nine months' men are found the names of Silas 
Baker, Josiah Priest, Phinehas Moore, Abner Ward, Reuben 
Priest, Timothy Rand, and Joseph Johnson. 

Capt. Moses Barnes was in the service two months, from first 
of May to first of July, 1779, and had under him, of Marl- 
borough men, Q,uartus Stow, David Brigham, Phinehas Brig- 
ham, Aaron Beaman, William Gates, and Nathan Rice. 

Among the six months' men were 



Elihu Maynard, 
David Sale, 
Alexander Watson, 
John Stow, 
William Weeks, 
Joseph Johnson, 
David Wait, 
Stephen Baker, 



David Holloway, 
Samuel Gates, 
Aaron Brigham, 
Joseph Robbins, 
Asa Witt, 
David Brigham, 
Paixl Brigham, 



Aaron Beaman, 
Abraham Stow, 
Joshua Bailey, 
Joseph Waters, 
Joseph Newton, 
Roger Phelps, 
Zerubbabel Eager. 



There were in service in Rhode Island, the following men 
from Marlborough : 



Jacob Brown, 
AVilliam Dawson, 
Joseph Waters, 
Thomas Williams, 
Uriah Eager, 
Elihu Maynard, 
Abraham Stow, 
Alexander Watson, 
Daniel Brigham, 
John Gates, 
Israel Brown, 
Israel Greenleaf, 
Putnam Phelps, 
Jonas Wilkins, 



Moses Eames, 
Paul Brigham, 
David Holloway, 
Moses Williams, 
Winslow Stow, 
Morris Clary, 
Silas Gates, Jr. 
William Gates, 
Aaron Eager, 
Stephen Eager, 
Samuel Gates, 
Aaron Beaman, 
Joseph Robbins, 
Jotham Bayley, 



David Wait, 
Samuel Brigham, 
Jonathan Goodnow, 
Silas Wilson, 
William Rice, 
Lovewell Brigham, 
William Weeks, 
Tolman Howe, 
Roger Phelps, 
Asa Witt, 
Aaron Brigham, 
Stephen Brigham, 
David Greenleaf, 
Abraham Priest. 



173 



In the expedition to Claverack, in 1780, under Capt. Amasa 
Cranston, were 



Alexander Watson, 
Ephraim Jewell, 
Nathan Rice, 



Samuel Dunton, 
Aaron Brigham, 
AVilliam Goodale, 



Silas Baker, 
Noah Beaman, Jr. 
John Dunn. 



In the three months' service in 1780. there were 



William Cory, 
Gardner Howe, 
Stephen Smith, 
Solomon Howe, 
Eber Keyes, 



Caleb Parker, 
Daniel Harrington, 
John Dunn, 
Joseph Tempi :>, 
John Jennison, 



Adam Harrington, 
Samuel Dunton, 
Aaron Brigham, 
Noah Beaman, 
Silas Stow. 



But the most important hst, because they were in the service 
longest, remains to be named. The following enlisted for 
tliree years, or during the Avar, and most of them served the full 
term, or till they were discharged. These men served a longer 
term than others, were subjected to greater hardships, and by 
the depreciation of the continental money received the least 
compensation for their service. Some of them were enrolled 
during the whole of the war, and fought upon almost every 
battle-field in the country. They generally received a small 
bounty on enlistment. The division generally known was 
that of First Three Years' Men, and the Last Three Years' 
Men. The following, as far as has been ascertained, is a list of 
the First Three Years' Men — though it shoidd be remembered 
that some of them enlisted "during the war." 



Francis Jones, 
Nathaniel Brown, 
Ephraim Wilder, 
Reuben Wilder, 
Samuel Gates, 
William H. Woods, 
Luke Howe, 
Moses Williams, 
Joseph Weeks, 
Elias Witt, 
Dana Newton, 



Isaac Procter, 
David Sale, 
David Wyman, 
Jedediah Maynard, 
AVilliam !Mercer, 
Elias Morse, 
John Maccanella, 
Timothy Johnson, 
Eli Howe, 
Stephen Hudson, 
Charles Hudson,* 



Samuel Russ, 
James Whitney, 
William Rice, 
Elisha Austin, 
Peter Little, 
Francis Soames, 
Stephen Phelps, 
John Baker, 
Phinehas Morse, 
Joseph Johnson, 
Jonathan Wiggins, 



* Charles Hudson was killed by our own men. He was out in a scouting party 
near the enemy, when fears were entertained for their safety, and another party was 
sent out for their protection. Night came on, and the last party hearing the approach 
of troops, and supposing them to be the enemy, secreted themselves, and on their 
near approach fired upon them, killing Charles Hudson and another of the first- 
named party, before they discovered their mistake. 
23 



174 



Joseph Miller, 
David Harris, 
Josiah Priest, 
Reuben Priest, 
James Mahew, 
David Hill, 
John Dunn, 
Thomas Baker, 
Alexander Crawford, 
William Fosdick, 
Abner Smith, 
John Cain, 
Jonathan Pollard, 
. Enoch Kidder, 
Joseph Waters, 
Jacob Groun, 
Jonah Newton, 
Joseph Newton, 
Samuel Little, 
Stephen Russell, 



Zerubbabel Eager, 
John Dexter, 
Jonathan Dexter, 
Nathan Pratt, 
John Rice, 
Silas Sawin, 
William Walker, 
John Newton, 
Levi Fletcher, 
Job Spaulding, 
Samuel Ditson, 
Thomas Ditson, 
Reuben Wyman, 
Thomas C. Ridgeway, 
Josiah Bailey, 
Thomas Greenough, 
James Edy, 
John Gilliard, 
Silas Harthorn, 
William Messer, 



Thomas Ridgeway, 
James Parker, 
Dean Wyman, 
Andrew Kettle, 
Patrick Mahony, 
Peter Willard, 
Joseph Dawson, 
Robert Mansfield, 
William Rice, 
John Johnson, 
Samuel French, 
Charles Benjean, 
John Denmark, 
John Ansel, 
Jonathan Newton, 
John B. Torrey, 
Samuel Fletcher, 
Benjamin Roberts, 
Prentice Russell. 



Among the Last Three Years' Men, are the following, sup- 
plied by Marlborough : 



William Goodale, 
Ephraim Newton, 
Jonathan Crosby, 
William Bigelow, 
Joseph Waters, 
Peter Stevenson, 
Samuel Spoiford, 
Israel Greenleaf, 
John Barnes, 
Benjamin Gould, 



Richard Wyman, 
Abel Ray, 
Aaron Brigham, 
Job Spaulding, 
John Rice, 
Joel Bartlett, 
Francis Menford, 
John Gates, 
Samuel McNair, 



Silas Baker, 
Edward Knapp, 
Robert Scott, 
William Shield, 
Samuel Wyman, 
Samuel Willard, 
Thomas Joslin, ^, 
John Newton, 
Stephen Phelps. 



During the whole period of the Revolution, the town of 
Marlborough took an active part in the contest, and, like other 
towns at that period, strained every nerve to supply her quota 
of troops, and to bear her share of the burdens of the war. She 
had defined her position before the contest commenced, was 
represented in the first Provincial Congress by Peter Bent, Ed- 
ward Barnes, and George Brigham, and by Peter Bent in the 
second and third ; she had organized her Minute-Men, and had 
supplied her stock of arms and ammunition as best she could ; 
and during the war had furnished a pretty formidable list of 
men. But such aid as she had afforded, cost her a severe effort. 
In addition to the encouragement offered by the Government, 
the town, by bounties of her own, encouraged enlistments. 



175 

In March, 1776, the town chose a committee of seven of their 
prominent men, " to devise ways and means for the manufac- 
turing of saltpetre in private families ; " as preparatory to the 
manufactnre of gunpowder. At a meeting held May 28, 1776, 
the town voted, " That if the Honorable Continental Congress 
shall, for the safety of the United Colonies, declare them inde- 
pendent of the Kingdom of Great Britain, we, the inhabitants 
of Marlborough, will solemnly engage, with our lives and for- 
tunes, to support them in the measure." Not only the town of 
Marlborough, but almost every town in the Province, passed in 
a solemn manner upon this subject. It would create a smile, 
at this day, for a town of a few hundred inhabitants to pass 
upon vast questions of national concernment. But at that day, 
Avith the true democratic spirit, our public men desired to obtain 
the sense of these little municipalities. And well they might. 
For at that period the town meeting was the forum where all 
political questions were discussed. In fact, it was in these little 
democracies that the seeds of liberty were first sown. Here the 
people of New England, from the first, were in the habit of dis- 
cussing all questions, and passing upon every subject in which 
they felt an interest. The influence of such gatherings was so 
obvious, that the Crown attempted to prohibit them ; but the 
people persevered in holding them, and making them the arena 
of political discussion. 

In 1776, the town voted " to give to every soldier that enlists 
to go to Canada, seven pounds as a bounty, or twelve pounds 
as a hire, exclusive of the Court's bounty, as the person that 
shall enlist shall choose." 

In March, 1777, the town voted " to give each soldier that 
shall enlist to serve in the Continental army the term of three 
years, or during the war, for this town, the sum of forty pounds 
as soon as they shall pass muster." They also empowered the 
Treasurer to borrow, in behalf of the town, such a sum as 
should be necessary to pay the soldiers thus enlisted. 

At a meeting, December 4, 1777, voted " to leave it with the 
Selectmen to supply the families of such non-commissioned 
officers and soldiers, as have engaged in the Continental army 
from this town." 

In January, 1778, at a town meeting, " Heard the Articles of 
Confederation and Peri)etual Union between the United States 



176 

of America — empowered the Representatives to act and do as 
they shall jndge most for the adv^antage of this and the United 
States, relative to that matter." 

At a meeting held March, 1778, " Voted to provide 32 pairs 
of stockings, 16 pairs of shoes, 16 pairs of breeches, and 32 
shirts for the soldiers; and that the Selectmen provide them, 
and send them as soon as may be upon the town's cost." 

At a meeting held May, 1778, to act upon the subject of a 
new Frame of Government, the record reads as follows : " After 
hearing the Constitution and Form of Government read, and 
Debates upon it — seventy-six v^oters present at the meeting — 
thirty-four were for approving and forty-two for disapproving 
of the Form of Government." So the town, as far as their 
vote was concerned, rejected the proposed Constitution ; and in 
this respect their voice was in harmony with that of the State. 

Additional troops having been called for, the town, at a meet- 
ing held May, 1778, 

" Voted, To give to each soldier that shall enlist before the 15th instant, to 
serve in the Continental army for the term of nine months, to do a turn for 
himself, thirty pounds as a bounty, and eight pounds per month wages for 
the time he shall serve in the army, over and above what the Continent 
gives." 

" Voted, To give each soldier that shall enlist by the 15th instant, to serve 
in the militia and do duty at Peekskill, to do a turn for himself, twenty 
pounds as a bounty, and four pounds per month wages, over and above what 
the Continent and State give." 

The meeting was then adjourned to the 15th instant, when 
it was found that the requisite ntmiber of men had not been 
obtained for the nine months' service ; whereupon it was 

" Voted, To give to each of the above named soldiers that shall enlist 
before next Monday, at five o'clock, P. M., one hundred and sixty pounds 
to do a turn for the totvn, or if either of them choose to do a turn for them- 
selves, then the town shall give them forty pounds as a bounty, and ten 
pounds per month wages, if they shall enlist before five o'clock next Monday 
afternoon, to serve in the Continental army nine months. 

" Voted, That the officers go to the Town Treasurer for the money to pay 
the soldiers for their bounty and hire, and that the Town Treasurer borrow 
the money upon the town's credit." 

Ill order to understand the expression of ' doing a turn for 
themselves,' or for the town, it is necessary to know that such 



177 

was the difficulty in obtaining soldiers, that they resorted to 
drafts, and in some towns a system of conscription was resorted 
to, as the only means of sustaining the army. The citizens 
were divided into classes, according to the valuation, and amount 
of taxes paid by the individuals. Each class was retjuired to 
furnish a man, and provide for his wages and support. Each 
member contributed according to his property, and all dclin- 
([uents were returned to the Assessors, and the sum due was 
included in his next tax. When an individual did a turn of 
duty for himself, he was excused from payment and exempt 
from draft till all others had been called out. In Marlborough, 
however, they had recourse only to drafts, where the same 
rotation existed. 

Numerous calls were made for troops, and it was found almost 
impossible to obtain them. Not, however, for the want of 
patriotism on the part of the men, so much as the want of 
ability in the Government to subsist and pay them. The town 
made a great effort to obtain her quota of men, by offering 
bounties in addition to the government pay ; bnt the deprecia- 
tion of the currency rendered the large bounties offered of but 
small value. Consequently, it was found necessary to graduate 
the bounty upon something more stable than a constantly de- 
preciating paper currency. The following action of the town 
will show the expedients to which the public were driven. At 
a meeting held June 21, 1779, the record reads thus: 

"Heard the Resolves of the Great and Genera] Court of the 8th and SHh 
instant, lor raising a reinforcement to tlie army. 

" Voted, To give each man that shall enlist, or his legal representative, 
if he should die in the service, forty .shillings per month, to be paid in pro- 
duce of this country, in beef at twenty sliillings per hundred, and Indian 
corn at three shillings per bushel, or as much money as shall purchase said 
produce, including their wages due from the Continent and State. The 
above to be paid at the expiration of their service — they producing a certifi- 
cate from the commanding ofncer, that tliey have been regularly discharged. 
And if the men do not turn out for the above encouragement in two days, 
then the officers draft according to t!ie orders of the General Court; and if 
any man is drafted, and will go, he shall be entitled to the forty shillings 
per month, as set forth above. Each man engaged for the above encourage- 
ment, is considered as doing his turn. 

" Voted, That sixty pounds be advanced by the Town Treasurer to each 
nun, before he marches, who engages in the Continental service for nine 
months, which is to be deducted at the final settlement. 



178 

" Voted, That the Treasurer be empowered to borrow the money for three 
months, on the credit of the town." 

It would seem, by the face of the record, that ample provis- 
ion was made for filling up the army. A liberal bounty was 
offered, and the Treasurer was empowered to borrow the requi- 
site sum on the credit of the town. But the fact was, the 
towns at that day had little or no credit ; and money was so 
scarce, that it could hardly be obtained on the most undoubted 
security. The scarcity of money enabled the sharpers who 
happened to hold it. to speculate upon the distress of the com- 
mimity, and to extort almost any rate they chose for the use 
of their money. Nor was this grasping spirit confined to the 
money-holders. Those who produced, or held the necessa- 
ries of life, came in for their share of profits ; and so deranged 
was the whole system of prices, and so great were the abuses at 
that time, that the people demanded a reformation. Congress 
had suggested the propriety of some action on the subject, and 
in Massachusetts a Convention assembled at Concord, for the 
purpose of taking the whole subject into consideration, and 
establishing a system of prices at which the necessaries of life 
and other articles should be sold. Marlborough was repre- 
sented in that Convention by Col. Edward Barnes and Samuel 
Curtis, Esq. 

This Convention met in July, and fixed a scale of prices for 
goods, wares, and merchandise, and also for articles of produce, 
and the wages of labor. They also proposed another Conven- 
tion, to meet in October, which reported more in detail. This 
report or plan, was adopted by the people of Marlborough, and 
a committee consisting of Capt. W. Brigham, Ithamar Brigham, 
Hezekiah Maynard, Dr. Curtis, Munning Sawin, Jonathan 
Temple, John Loring, Joseph Arnold, Peter Wood, Capt. Gates, 
Thaddeus Howe, Winslow Brigham, and William Boyd, was 
chosen to regulate the price of merchandise, produce, &c. &c. 

This committee submitted their list of prices at the next 
meeting, which was adopted by the town. Unfortunately their 
report is not upon the records or files of Marlborough. From 
the files of another town in the county, however, we glean the 
following, as the price of certain articles, &c., as agreed upon 
by the convention. 



179 

West India rum, £6 9s. per gall. ; N. E. rum, £4 16s. per gall. ; coffee, 18s. 
per lb. ; molasses, £4 15s. per gall. ; brown sugar from 10s. to 14s. per lb. ; 
Bohea tea, £5 16s. per lb. ; salt, £10 8s. per bushel. 

Indian com, £4 4s. per bushel ; rye, £5 10s. per bush. ; wheat, £8 10s. per 
bush. ; beef, 5s. 2d. per lb. ; mutton, lamb and veal, 4s. per lb. ; butter, 12s. 
per lb. ; cheese, best quality, 6s. per lb. ; hay, 30s. per cwt. ; sheep's wool, 24s. 
per lb. ; flax, 12s. per lb. 

Yard wide tow cloth, 24s. per yd. ; cotton do., 36s. per yd. ; men's shoes, £6 
per pair; women's do., £6. For weaving tow cloth, yard wide, 4s.; cotton, 
4s. 6rf. ; and wool do., Os. per yd. 

Carpenters, per day's work, 60s. ; masons, do., 60s. ; common laborers, 48s. 
in summer. 

Flip, "W. I., per mug, los. ; flip, X. E., 12s. ; toddy in proportion. Extra 
good dinner, 20s. ; common do., 12s. Best supper and breakfast, los.; com- 
mon do., 12s. Horse-keeping 24 hours, at hay, los. ; grass, 10s. 

This selection from a great variety of articles, will show 
their relative value ; and as a pound, or twenty shillings, was at 
that time worth about eleven pence in silver, the real value can 
easily be calculated. The people at this day would hardly be 
willhig to work in the summer season for thirty-five cents per 
day, and pay for Bohea tea ninety-three cents per pound. The 
town subsequently chose a committee to carry the report into 
effect. 

On the 22d of May, 1780, the Constitution and Frame of 
Government came before the town for its adoption or rejection, 
and it was adopted almost unanimously — 75 to 7. 

But the great subject which pressed most heavily upon the 
people, was the carrying on of the war. The term of the first 
three years' men had expired, and but few were disposed to 
re-enter the service. The Continental Congress called for large 
reinforcements to the army. Massachusetts, the first to com- 
mence the glorious struggle, held herself ready to supply her 
quota of men ; she called upon the towns, which were dis- 
posed to respond promptly. But their resources were nearly 
exhausted. Patriotic citizens were ready to enlist, if they 
could be clothed and fed and paid. But the credit of the State 
was impaired ; and the towns were almost on the eve of bank- 
ruptcy. Marlborough had, from time to time, empowered her 
Treasm'er to borrow money ; but money could not be had in 
sufficient quantities to meet the drains upon the treasury. 
They called upon individual citizens to loan small sums, with 
a provision that the town security given would be taken in 



1^0 

payment of their next tax. This gave a httle temporary relief; 
but it was only putting off the evil day. 

In the mean time, new demands for men, and clothing, and 
provisions for the army were made. Tlie town was called 
upon to supply its quota of three years' men. But the deplorable 
state of the currency was such, that the soldiers would not take 
it. As a class they had suffered more than any other, from the 
depreciation of the currency, and they were unwilling to re- 
enlist. A large committee was chosen to procure the men, but 
they could not succeed. An effort was made to adopt a system 
of conscription, which had been authorized by the State, and 
adopted in some of the towns ; but it was voted down. As 
the last resort, they repudiated the sinking currency, and 
adopted a growing one, as will be seen by the following vote. 

" At a meeting held February 12, 1781, Voted, To give as a bounty to each 
man that shall engage in the Continental army, during the war, twenty steers 
three years old, or in lieu of each steer, fourteen hard dollars, and to be paid 
to the men that shall engage, one-third part at the time of their passing 
muster, and the other two-tliirds, one-half in one year from the time they 
shall engage, and the other half in two years from the time they shall so 
engage. 

"Also Voted, To give as a bounty to each man that shall engage in the 
Continental army for three years, twenty steers three years old, and to be 
paid to each man as follows : four steers at the time of his passing muster, 
and sixteen steers at the expiration of three years, unless sooner discharged ; 
and in that case to be paid in proportion. The above steers to be estimated 
at fifteen dollars each." 

We can hardly realize the destitution of the people at that 
time in almost every means necessary to prosecute a war. Not 
only was there a great scarcity of money, the sinews of war, 
but of almost every thing that is needful to carry on a campaign. 
Blankets, so essential to the comfort and health of the soldier, 
could hardly be obtained in the country in quantities sufficient 
to supply the men. Camp-kettles were scarce, and difficult to 
be obtained. Powder, that all-important article in war, was so 
hard to be procured that it had to be used very sparingly ; and 
in some cases, battles were lost for the want of a supply. And 
even lead was so difficult to be obtained, that many articles of 
household convenience, such as plates, and porringers, and 
spoons, were melted up for bullets ; and those who had leaden 



181 

weights to their windows, or any other articles of lead, were 
publicly called upon to deliver them to the authorities, that the 
army might be supplied with ammunition. 

But the great cause of the embarrassftient was tiie scarcity 
of the precious metals. There was, at the commencement of 
the Revolution, but little coin in the country, and this induced 
an issue of paper, which shared the fate of all paper issues 
when not founded upon a metallic basis. This paper and con- 
tinental money depreciated, till it became almost, if not quite 
valueless. In June, 1780, the town of Marlborough voted to 
give, as a bounty to every soldier who would enlist for six 
months, three thousand dollars. The same year the town appro- 
priated £50,000 for their ordinary town expenses ; and this was 
only to eke out a modest little grant of £100,000 made earlier 
the same season. 

Such grants will cast light upon the report of a committee to 
settle with the Town Treasurer for the year 1780. The com- 
mittee report, 

£ s. d. ipr. 

We find the Treasurer charged with . . . 212,129 7 4 2 

We find he has paid out .... 
Outstanding money in Constable's hands, . 
Counterfeit money in the Treasury, 
Money in the Treasury, .... 



141.442 


11 


5 


2 


67 


,591 


18 


6 


2 




68 













28 


17 


4 


2 



Which makes the sum -with which he is charged £212,129 7 4 2 

Such a depreciation in the circulating medium would at any 
time produce a great derangement in business, destroy confi- 
dence, and bring about a state of confusion in the transactions 
of life. And when we consider that this took place in the 
midst of the exhausting war of the Revolution, we are surprised 
that our fathers sustained themselves as well as they did. 

As this element of depreciation in the paper currency of that 
day, is interwoven with almost every business transaction, pub- 
lic or private, it becomes important that we should understand 
the origin of these paper issues, and the causes of their depre- 
ciation. 

The unsuccessful expedition against Canada in 1690, involved 
the Province in a heavy debt. To meet this demand, bills of 
credit were issued for one year. These were punctually 
redeemed till 1704, when the expenses of calamitous wars 

24 



182 

induced the General Court to defer the payment, first for two 
years, and afterwards for a longer term. About 1714, the sub- 
ject of currency attracted considerable attention. Some were 
for returning to a specie currency ; others, for a land bank ; and 
others, for the Province loaning its credit to the towns, and 
thence in small sums to the inhabitants on interest. This latter 
scheme prevailed, and £50,000 were issued and passed over to 
the towns, in proportion to their share of the public tax. The 
sums thus apportioned to the towns, were intrusted to trustees 
appointed by the towns, to be loaned out in small sums to indi- 
viduals, who were to repay it at stated times with interest, and 
this interest was to be appropriated to defray the public ex- 
penses. 

But these bills were constantly undergoing a depreciation. 
In 1702, an ounce of silver would buy of these bills 6s. lO^d. ; 
in 1705, 7s.; in 1713, 8s. ; in 1716, 9s. 3d. ; in 1717, 12s. ; in 
1722, 14s. ; in 1728, 18s. ; in 1730, 20s. ; in 1737. 26s. ; in 
1741, 28s. ; in 1749, 60s. 

Another scheme was projected, to support a paper currency 
by silver coin, viz. — a loan of £60,000 to be deposited with 
the towns, as in the other case, but to be repaid in specie. 
To extinguish this paper currency, which had become exceed- 
ingly oppressive, the home Government interposed, and Parlia- 
ment, knowing that this paper had been issued to carry on the 
wars of Great Britain against the French and Indians, passed an 
act for reimbursing the Colonies in specie. The General Court 
provided by law for the rate at which these bills of credit should 
be redeemed ; and fixed it at about one-fifth less than their lowest 
current value ; that is, at fifty shillings for an ounce of silver, 
which was valued at 6s. 8d., or an English crown. This was 
the origin of the " Old Tenor " reckoning — fifty shillings of 
paper equal to an ounce of silver, or 6s. 8c?. 

As the design of this law was the abolition of the paper cur- 
rency, and as the grant of Parliament was insufficient to redeem 
the whole mass of paper that the Province had issued, the 
remainder was liquidated by a tax of £75,000, payable in bills, 
at the above rate of fifty shillings in bills for 6s. 8d. in specie. 
All future debts, after March 31, 1750, it was enacted, should 
be understood to be contracted on the specie basis of 6s. 8d. per 
ounce of silver. This was the origin of what has been known 



183 

as "lawful money;" three ounces of silver being equivalent 
to £1, or 20 shillings. 

This restored the currency to a metallic basis, and a uniform 
permanent value. Having passed this crisis of depreciation, 
the people enjoyed a sound and uniform circulating medium, 
for more than twenty years. 

But the breaking out of hostilities with the mother country, 
imposed a new obligation upon the Province. War had com- 
menced, and means must be supplied to carry it on. Conse- 
quently the Provincial Congress, in May, 1775, empowered the 
Treasurer to borrow one hundred thousand pounds, lawful 
money, secured by notes of the Province, at six per cent, and 
made payable June 1, 1777. They also desired the other 
Colonies to give currency to such securities. At the same time 
they commended this subject to the consideration of the Conti- 
nental Congress. 

The Treasurer was required to issue no notes of a less 
denomination than £4 ; but it was found necessary, to meet 
the wants of the army, to have notes of a less denomination ; 
and the Provincial Congress empowered the Treasurer to issue 
notes of six, nine, ten, twelve, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen, 
eighteen and twenty shillings — this emission not to exceed 
£26,000. Almost simultaneously with these issues by the 
State, Continental bills were issued by the General Govern- 
ment. For the first year these bills circulated freely, and were 
readily exchanged for cash. 

But the continued issue of such bills by the state and the 
nation, and the fact that they had no specie to redeem them ; 
the dubious prospect of the result of the war, and the general 
exhaustion of the community ; tended to depreciate their value. 
Add to this, the British officers and the adherents of the royal 
cause in the midst of us, took every opportmiity, and had 
recourse to every means, to impair the value of this paper. 
They represented, and with too much truth, that the Conti- 
nental Congress had no means by which to redeem their bills; 
and with great injustice asserted that they never intended to 
provide for their redemption. Under the influence of these 
causes, this paper money gradually sunk in value, till it required 
about seventy-five pounds in paper to procure one in specie. 
Such a reduction in the value of the circulating medium 



184 



wroiiglit great injustice, especially towards those who subsisted 
on a salary, or labored for stated pay, Jfixed beforehand. Many 
clergymen found, by sad experience, that the salary which, at 
their settlement, was deemed sufficient, would hardly save them 
from starvation ; and the poor soldiers who enlisted at govern- 
ment wages, for three years, found their wages hardly worth 
receiving, as will be seen by the following scale of deprecia- 
tion. 



A Table shoiving the Depreciation of Pape 
Janiiarij 1, 1781, inclusive ; in which 
paper, will he seen for each month duri 



Year. Month. 

1777 January . 
" February . 
" March . . 
" April . . . 
" May . . . 
*•' June . . . 
" July . . . 
" August . . 
" September 
" October. . 
" November 
" December 

1778 January . 
" February . 
" March . . 
" April . . . 
" May . . . 
" June . . . 
" July . . . 
" August . . 
" September 
" October. . 
" November 
" December 



Money, from January 1, 1777, to 



the value of £1, or 
g the whole period. 

s. d. qr. Year. Month 

19 2 1779 January 

18 8 3 " February 

18 4 " March 

17 10 1 " April . 

17 5 3 " May . 

16 8 " June . 

16 " July . 

13 4 " August 

11 5 " September 

7 3 " October , 

6 8 " November 

6 5 1 " December 

6 11 1780 January 

5 8 2 " February 

5 4 " March 

5 " April . 

5 " May . 

5 " June . 

4 8 1 " July . 

4 4 3 " August 

4 2 2 " September 

4 " October. . 

3 8 " November 

3 13 " December 

1781 Januaiy . 



20 shillings in 



d. qr. 

8 1 
3 2 


9 3 



7 
5 
4 
2 
1 
11 
10 
9 



8 
7 1 
6 1 
6 
5 3 



The above scale of depreciation will enable us, at any period 
during these years, to estimate the worth in specie, or lawful 
money, of the paper currency then in circulation. 

It may not be amiss to state, that what was so embarrassing in 



185 

Massachusetts, was still more so in all the States south of the 
Potomac, where little or nothing was done to sustain the credit 
of the country ; and where, during the whole period of the 
Revolution, Massachusetts did more for the nation, in men and 
money, than any other State. By an official report from the 
Treasury Department at Washington, made in 1790, it appears 
that the amount of money, including paper reduced to its 
specie value, which had been received by and paid to the 
several States by Congress, from the commencement of the 
Revolution, was as follows : 

States. Paid to State. Received from State. 

Kcw Hampshire S 440,974 $ 4GG,554 

Massachusetts 1,245,737 3,1(57,020 

Khode Islaud 1,028,511 310,395 

Conncctiout 1,016,273 1,007,250 

New York 822,803 1,545,889 

New Jersey 336,729 512,916 

Pennsylvania 2,087,270 2,629,410 

Delaware 63,817 208,878 

Maryland 609,617 945,537 

Virgmia 482,881 1,965,811 

North Carolina 788,031 219,835 

South Carolina 1,014,808 499,325 

Georgia 679,412 122,744 

Thus it will be seen, that while Massachusetts paid into the 
Continental treasury, during the Revolution, $1,921,283 more 
than she received back, the five States of Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia, paid only $178,503 
more than they received ; so that Massachusetts, in fact, con- 
tributed a balance toward the support of the war more than ten 
times as great as the five States mentioned ! In this burden 
upon Massachusetts, Marlborough, and all other towns in the 
State bore their share. 

No wonder the soldiers were unwilling to enlist at govern- 
ment prices, when, before the term for which they were 
engaged should expire, their wages would become valueless. 
No wonder, with such a circulating medium, that all confidence 
was impaired, and the whole community was thrown into an 
embarrassed state. With hostile fleets upon our coast, and 



186 

hostile armies upon oar soil ; with a feeble army, whose term 
of enlistment was about to expire ; and with crippled resources* 
and a worthless currency, which could not command the 
services of new recruits, their condition was truly gloomy. 
The war had called so many able-bodied men from the cidtiva- 
tion of the soil, that the annual product was greatly reduced ; 
and what was raised was, to a considerable extent, produced 
by the labor of the women and children. But under all these 
embarrassments, the people sustained the country, and their 
resolution to be free carried them through victorious. 

The surrender of Cornwallis sent a thrill of joy through the 
great heart of the nation, and the treaty of 1783 gave rest to 
the people. 

We have seen that during the whole of the war, Marl- 
borough furnished a large number of men. How many were 
lost in the service we have no means of ascertaining. 

Other events, of local interest, occurred during the period 
covered by the Revolution, which require a passing notice. 

In 1775, the dysentery prevailed in town to an alarming 
degree, especially among children, and proved signally fatal. 
In three instances, four persons were buried in one day, and nine- 
teen in one week. Almost every family was called to mourning. 
Ivory Bigelow lost three children ; Samuel Hunting, three ; Paul 
Brigham, three ; and many others, two each. This was the 
most destructive epidemic which ever visited the town. Some 
idea of the mortality may be formed from the fact, that the 
number of deaths in 1775 was 78 ; while the average for the 
four preceding years was only .22, and the average for the four 
following years was but 28. 

The winter of 1780 was remarkable for its severity and the 
depth of snow. The streams and springs, upon which many 
families depended for water, were so completely closed by ice 
and buried in snow, that they were obliged to melt snow for 
household purposes, and in some cases to water their cattle. 
The depth of snow prevented their getting into the woods with 
their teams, and many families were supplied with fuel by 
drawing it to their houses on hand-sleds, in paths upon the 
snow made by rackets or snow-shoes. Hay in some places was 
so scarce that some farmers were compelled to feed their stock 



187 

upon brouse ; and where the woods were remote from their 
barns, the boughs were frequently drawn like the wood, upon a 
hand-sled, and fed out to the cattle. Instances occurred in 
Marlborough, where, in cases of death, the corpse was drawn 
several miles to the place of burial on snow-shoes, the roads 
being otherwise impassable by reason of snow. 

This year is also memorable for a day of unusual darkness, 
which extended throughout New England. On the 19th of 
May, between the hours of ten and eleven, with the wind at 
the south-west, the clouds appeared to be charged with a thick, 
yellowish vapor, which spread over the whole heavens, shut- 
ting out, to a remarkable degree, the light of day. The dark- 
ness was so great that persons were unable to read common 
print, or to manage their domestic affairs, without artificial 
light, " Candles were lighted up in the houses ; the birds, 
having sung their evening songs, disappeared and became 
silent; the fowls retired to roost; the cocks were crowing all 
around, as at break of day ; objects could not be distinguished 
but at a very little distance ; and everything bore the appear- 
ance and gloom of night." 

The winter of '' the year '80," and " Dark Day," were sub- 
jects of frequent remark by the generation that has passed off 
the stage. 



CHAPTER IX. 

THE STATE OF THINGS AFTER THE REVOLUTION. 

Pecuniar J' Embarrassment — Shays' Rebellion — Resolutions and Instructions 
to Representatives — Wise Statesmanship — Return of Tories agitated — 
Further Instructions to Representatives — Difficulties in settling a Minister 
— Mr. Packard settled — His Labors and Sentiments — New Meeting- 
Houses — West Parish incorporated — Succession of Clergymen — Methodist 
Society — Universalist Society — Baptist Society — Catholic Society. 

The close of the war left the people in peace, but at the 
same time in a state of exhaustion. The great struggle for 
freedom was over. Great Britain had discovered her folly too 
late, and was compelled to acknowledge our Independence. 
We were a free people. But with our freedom came new 
responsibilities and new embarrassments. The financial diffi- 
culties which were among the greatest obstacles to the prosecu- 
tion of the war, during the last years of its continuance, did 
not cease with the return of peace. The National Treasury, if 
such a thing ever existed, was empty. The State had nearly 
exhausted its resources. The towns were groaning under a 
weight of debt. Individuals were involved in pecuniary em- 
barrassments. And while these evils were pressing like an 
incubus upon the community, the pressure of an outward 
enemy and the stimulus of anticipated success — causes which 
had made the people bear and forbear — were removed, and they 
were left to realize their destitute condition. 

The soldiers who had so gallantly served their country, 
returned penniless to their homes, in some cases with impaired 
health, and in cases more numerous with the habits of the 
camp, which poorly qualified them for the duties of industrious 
citizens. Many were discharged without pay, or with depre- 
ciated paper, a month's earnings of which would scarcely pur- 
chase a meal of victuals or a night's lodging ; and were justly 



189 

clamorous in their demands for remuneration for their services. 
Many of the farmers, comparatively rich in broad acres, were 
destitute of money, or any thing which could command it. 
Many sharpers in the community, who had demands upon 
others, were disposed to exact the uttermost farthing, or were 
exorbitant in their demands, in case delay of payment was 
granted. These causes pressed so heavily upon the people, 
that the effects of the war seemed more distressing than the 
war itself. These evils embarrassed the action of every town, 
and threatened, for a time, to overwhelm the community in 
ruin. 

Feeling the weight of these burdens, but not realizing their 
true causes, many people felt jealous of their neighbors, and 
charged upon them the burdens which grew out of causes over 
which no one had any control. This only aggravated the 
evils under which all classes were groaning. Constables, who 
in those days were collectors of taxes, were m-ged to make 
immediate collections, especially of those who were already in 
arrears for previous taxes. But these officers, though clothed 
with the authority of law, were in a manner powerless. Prop- 
erty was taken, and offered for sale in payment of taxes, and 
was bid off at a mere nominal sum, if indeed a bidder could be 
found ; and in some cases warrants were issued, and constables 
were arrested for not collecting and paying over to the State 
Treasurer the sum thus assessed upon the towns. These diffi- 
culties and embarrassments were felt by Marlborough, in com- 
mon with other towns ; and they are stated here as a part of 
the liistory of the times, that the present generation may realize 
the price our fathers paid for freedom. 

I cannot better describe this general embarrassment and dis- 
tress, than by giving a case which occurred in Marlborough, in 
the very language of one of her distinguished citizens, who 
filled the office of constable.* 

" About one thousand pounds, in hard money, I had to collect from one- 
fourth of the town, and a circumstance which rendered it difficult for me 
was, that most of the people in my part of the town were behind in settling 
■with the last preceding collector ; and it appeared to me, there was not 
then money in possession or at command among the people in my quarter 
of the town, to discharge the taxes I then had to collect. And what would 

* Peter Wood, Esq. 
25 



190 

have been the result, if I at first had made distress, I cannot say. But it 
was well known how I succeeded when I did make the attempt. 

"Previous to my making distress, I followed the people, by night and by 
day, with solicitations and threats ; but in vain. At length I took by dis- 
tress, agreeably to law, to the value of about one hundred pounds, the prop- 
erty of those whose taxes were due, and exposed it to sale at vendue ; but 
could not sell it. And it appeared that there was a previous determination 
among the people to prevent property being taken and sold in that way, for 
the payment of taxes ; consequently I had, as I then found, for the want of 
aiiiffher bidder, to strike off a yoke of oxen, said to be worth fifty dollars, at 
one shilling ; and a cow said to be worth fifteen dollars, at six pence. Thus 
finding myself unable to raise the money in that way, as I then thought, I 
returned the property to the persons from whom I had taken it — one yoke of 
oxen excepted. And I then being pursued by an execution in an officer's 
hands, and being deceived by the people and drove to extremity, and finding 
(as I then thought) no other alternative, I submitted to go to gaol ; which 
was attended and followed with such expense and loss as I am unable to 
bear." 

This is but a picture of what existed at the close of the Rev- 
ohition. The war debt, the state of the currency, and the 
general derangement of business of all kinds ; the want of con- 
fidence in the community ; the apparent indifference of some 
to their pecuniary obligations, and the exorbitant exactions of 
others ; the multiplicity of suits and the apparent if not real 
and unnecessary delays in the courts of justice ; the false 
notions entertained by some that the freedom they had acquired 
by war, gave them a universal license in peace ; these and 
similar evils incident to the transition state through which they 
were passing, proved quite as trying as the war itself; and were 
a necessary part of that discipline, requisite to fit the people for 
the permanent enjoyment of liberty regulated by law. 

The General Court attempted to relieve these embarrass- 
ments, but their efforts were attended with but partial success. 
Though the evils were such as the Legislature could not cure, 
the people who felt the oppressive burdens, would naturally 
charge the fault upon somebody. The Commonwealth was in 
commotion ; conventions were called ; resistance to the laws 
threatened ; and an actual insurrection was inaugurated. Marl- 
borough does not appear to have taken any prominent part in 
these movements. But although not ultra, she partook of the 
common feeling, and expressed her opinions in a public manner. 



191 

At a meeting legally warned, September 25, 1786, they 
instnicted Col. Edward Barnes, their Representative, as follows : 

" Many towns in this Commonwealth did not send Representatives to the 
General Court this year, whereby, as we conceive, there is an undue balance 
of power and interest, as appears by some votes, and by these will be an 
unequal taxation ; that is, the farmers will be greatly distressed, while the 
merchants may riot in grandeur and luxury ; for while the former hath 
attended to his farm, the merchant hath speculated in public securities, and 
is now endeavoring to establish funds to receive twenty shillings for that 
which cost them about two shillings and six pence, and the farmer to be 
chiefly taxed for the payment thereof. While the Great and General Court 
sits in the town of Boston, are not many of the Representatives of the 
several country towns often found attending to their own private business, 
when they ought to attend to the public's only ; and also being exposed to 
that undue influence of crafty and designing men, or their counsels — which 
last-mentioned reason Congress offered for their removal — shall not we be 
as jealous of our Representatives as Congress were of themselves ? 

" We therefore instruct you to use your endeavors and influence to have 
said Court removed to some convenient inland town. 

" We have found that the administration of justice by the Courts of Com- 
mon Pleas, and the Courts of General Sessions of the Peace, have been 
attended with great expense and trouble, to little purpose, so that they 
appear to be almost needless ; therefore we instruct you that you use your 
endeavors that some other more easy and cheap method be substituted in 
their stead. 

" The great abuse of the law, by the Order of Lawyers, calls aloud for a 
reformation ; therefore we instruct you that you use your endeavors to get 
such laws enacted as will prove effectual to their reformation or total 
annihilation. Also that the Fee Bill be revised, so as to give equal pay for 
equal service ; and that the pay of the First Magistrate of this Common- 
wealth be lessened for another year, before such Magistrate be chosen to 
said office ; also that all other officers of Government, whose pay should be 
thought too high, be lowered in like manner. 

" We have found by sorrowful experience, that we have been destitute of 
laws to regulate Trade and Commerce, and this, perhaps, for want of invest- 
ing Congress with power therefor — which has been almost the whole cause 
whereby we have run into idleness, luxury and prodigality, and are now left 
without a circulating medium to pay our debts or taxes. We therefore 
instruct you to give Congress sufficient power to regulate Trade and Com- 
merce, and that all monies arising from imposts and excise be appropriated 
for the payment of the Foreign Debt only ; also that our unappropriated 
lands be sold at a reasonable sum per acre, and that all domestic Public 
Securities, State and Continental, be received in payment for the same ; and 
that such ineasures may be taken as to make it the interest of the holders o^ 
these securities to take said lands. 

" Also that no person be allowed to sell any foreign goods without first 
obtaining a license for that purpose, from the Selectmen of the town, where 



192 

said trader resides, and that each pay for their license a sum equal to inn- 
holders and retailers of spirituous liquors. And that there be an excise laid 
on all foreign imported articles, except salt, cotton, wool, and warlike stores, 
equal to that on spirituous liquors ; and that all excise shall be collected by 
the respective towns where such excise shall be due, free of charge to the 
State. And also that there be a bounty given for all sheep kept four months 
in this State, next preceding the shearing in the months of April, May, or 
June. That a bounty be granted on all flax and hemp raised in this State. 

" The entire prosperity of every State depends upon the discipline of its 
armies. When we take a view of the present situation of the militia in this 
State, is it not alarming ? The regiment of which we are a part, has been 
neglected, as it was the year preceding the late war — unofficered for almost 
two years ; and many regiments are in not much better situation. From 
what quarter this neglect comes, we do not pretend to say ; but this we 
aver, that something is out of order. Some companies have not been called 
into the field, even to have their arms viewed, since the close of the war. 
A remedy for such an enormous evil ought to be sought for. We therefore 
instruct you that you use your endeavor and influence, that every ofiicer, 
from the highest to the lowest, be made to do his duty, and that the militia 
be immediately put on a respectable and safe foundation ; and that the Town 
Clerk record and transmit a copy of these instructions to Adams and Nurse 
for publication." 

This doctiment was signed by Alpheus Woods, Jonas Morse, 
and Benjamin Sawin ; and though somewhat long, it throws 
important light upon the state of feeling at that time, and 
shows the issues then before the people. We may not sympa- 
thize with all the views therein expressed ; but at the same 
time we admire that jealousy of the rights of the people, to 
secure which they had just passed through a seven years' war. 
The idea of removing the seat of the Government into the 
interior, so that the Legislature might be free from the corrupt- 
ing influence of a large town, was quite prevalent at that day ; 
and we are not prepared to say that their views were not 
sound. 

The ideas they express in relation to the militia, though not 
in accordance with the popular views of the present day, were 
wisely adapted to the wants of that period, and showed the 
forethought of our fathers. They had just passed through a 
war in which the want of discipline was severely felt, and they 
were then on the eve, if not in the midst, of a rebellion in 
which the military were relied upon to keep the peace and 
sustain the institutions of the State. And the condition in 
which the country has been found at this day, on the breaking 



193 

out of the Secession Rebellion, may admonish ns that the old 
maxim, " in peace prepare for war," has been of late too much 
neglected. 

But the part of these instructions which relates to the regula- 
lation of trade and commerce, exhibits a high degree of soinid 
statesmanship, and a correct view of the principles of political 
economy. The intimation here thrown out, that the regulation 
of trade or commerce, being a national affair, should be left to 
Congress, embodied one of the principal considerations which 
led to the formation of the Constitution of the United States. 
The people found, by experience, that commerce was too broad 
a subject to be left to the separate, varying action of thirteen 
dilferent States ; that the regulation should be uniform ; and 
hence the power should be reposed in one Central Government. 
In another respect these instructions suggest the doctrine of a 
protective policy, which has been advocated by most of the 
sound statesmen of the country. In the regulation of trade, 
they recommend that a distinction should be made between the 
necessaries of life and the luxuries. Their intimation that the 
free importation of luxuries led to extravagance and prodigality, 
is what experience has abundantly shown ; and one fruitful 
source of our financial embarrassments at this day, is our prone- 
ness to indulge in a practice which the fathers of the town of 
Marlborough condemned seventy-five years ago. 

Their recommendation to encourage the growth of wool, 
hemp and flax, shows that they had an eye to the production 
of every article necessary to render us in fact, what we were in 
name, an independent nation. They had in their own persons 
protected the countiy against British bayonets, and they saw 
the wisdom of protecting the country against British looms. 
We notice this suggestion the more readily, because we have 
long been satisfied, that with all our boast of improvement, the 
great mass of the people, at this day, know less of the true sci- 
ence of government, than our fathers did in the days of the 
Revolution. Illiterate as most of them were, and unfinished, in 
point of composition, as were many of the documents which 
emanated from the common farmers of that day, their produc- 
tions often contain the soundest principles of civil polity. In 
fact, they were bred in the school of politics in which the 
science of civil government was the great topic taught, and 



194 

where it was studied, not as a mere abstraction, but as a prac- 
tical reality. 

One important fact connected with the history of the times, 
shows the wisdom of the view taken by the committee. After 
the peace of 1783, we immediately commenced a ruinous sys- 
tem of imports, making the balance of trade greatly against the 
country. From Great Britain alone we imported, in 1784: and 
1785, goods, wares and merchandise, to the amount of about 
$30,000,000 ; while our exports to that country, during the same 
years, amounted only to about $8,500,000 — thus increasing our 
foreign indebtedness $10,000,000 a year. This fact shows the 
necessity which existed at that time of adopting some regulation 
to check foreign importations. The great laws of trade, and 
the importance of having a balance in our favor, which lie at 
the foundation of national prosperity, were so far appreciated at 
that day, that the committee urge the necessity of encouraging 
home industry, and building up domestic manufactures. And 
well would it have been for the country, if the sound and prac- 
tical views of our fathers had been more steadily adhered to 
by their sons. 

Another question, after the Treaty of 1783, arose, and pro- 
duced considerable feeling in the community. By that Treaty 
Congress agreed to recommend to the respective States to allow 
the tories and refugees who had left the country, and whose 
estates had generally been confiscated, to return and receive a 
restoration of their property. Still the States, being sovereign 
on questions of this nature, could do as they pleased in the 
premises. This question was agitated in Marlborough, in 1783, 
when the report of a committee of which Captain Moses Woods 
was Chairman, came up and was adopted. The report which 
follows, clearly shows the feelings of the people on the subject. 

" As to the reports we have heard from different quarters, concerning the 
return of the conspirators and absentees, whose conduct has merited eternal 
banishment from these States, and whose presence among the genuine sons 
of liberty would be as unnatural as that of Satan among the sons of God ; 
though it may be good policy to insist upon a perpetual separation, we 
recommend it to the town to refrain from giving instructions to their Repre- 
sentative, until the doings of Congress may be known respecting the matter, 
when they will be better able to judge of the propriety of such proceedings ; 
and till then, rely upon the wisdom, goodness, and patriotism of our Repre- 



195 

sentative to oppose the return of any of the above described miscreants to 
this State, so far as is consistent with its interest, or the Treaty of Peace." 

Nothing is more true than that adversity makes men. True 
patriots, hke true saints, frequently •' come out of great tribula- 
tion." The Revohition tried the courage of our fathers, and 
fitted them for soldiers ; and the exhausted state of their finances 
taught them economy, and proved the parent of that industry 
and frugality which have made Massachusetts what she is. 
We have already seen that the good people of Marlborough 
were aware that a protective system was the wisest policy 
for the State, and that the balance of trade with Great Brit- 
ain, in 1784 and 1785, was heavily against us, and that our 
financial embarrassment arose, in part, from that cause. Of this 
fact our fathers appear to have been perfectly conscious. A 
committee, consisting of Simon Stow, Jonas Morse, Simon 
Howe, Alpheus Woods, and William Boyd, was appointed to 
take into consideration the embarrassed condition of the com- 
mimity, and report at the next meeting. In January, 1787, 
they submitted the result of their consideration and reflection 
to their fellow-citizens, as follows : 

" The political evils, under which this town, as a part of the community, 
labors, are truly alarming and distressing. Yet we are not without hopes ; 
but on the contrary, are confident that by a speedy exertion of that noble 
principle, virtue, we may yet rise superior to, and brave every difhculty that 
threatens us as a people. But in order the bettor to show how we are to 
amend, it may be proper to point out sonie of the evils which have been the 
procuring causes of our present difficulties. We conceive that the past 
impolitic commercial intercourse with Great Britain has drained us of our 
money, so that we are unable to pay our taxes and discharge our private 
debts ; therefore, the contrary must work a cure ; namely, by the encourage- 
ment of our own manufactures, as far and as speedily as possible. The ex- 
ertion of this town, collectively considered, will be but as a drop in the 
bucket ; yet we have this consolation, that if every one will mend one, we 
shall soon feel the benefit of it ; more especially, when assisted by the form- 
ation and execution of wise and wholesome laws. 

" We cannot but observe, with deep-felt sorrow and concern, the conduct 
of a large number of towns in this Commonwealth, at the last election, in not 
being represented at the General Court the present year ; although, by the 
present mode of representation, the lower house would be exceedingly bulky, 
yet since there is such uneasiness in different parts of the Commonwealth, 
as we fear threatens a dissolution of the political fabric, we could earnestly 
wish and hope that there might not be a single town or plantation, at the 



196 

next election, unrepresented ; for by this peaceable and constitutional way, 
any act may be passed, and every real grievance redressed, in preference to 
a recourse to arms. 

" But to return. We, taking into consideration the distresses of the town, 
do earnestly recommend to every inhabitant thereof, to receive and cherish 
the spirit of 1775, by refraining from, as far as is in our power, the excessive 
use of foreign manufactures, especially articles of luxury and extravagance, 
and by exerting their best endeavors that they, and all under their care^ 
promote industry and economy, and our own manufactures. And here we 
cannot but lament the expense of time and money that is taken up in public 
houses, and in unnecessary tea-table visits, &lc. We would recommend to 
the inhabitants of this town, that they exercise as much economy in these 
matters as is possible. But we conceive it will not be in our power to man- 
ufacture to advantage, while the land-holders are loaded with so great a 
share of the public taxes. We, therefore, recommend to the town, with a 
view to accomplish these noble ends, to instruct their Representative, at the 
next session, to use his best endeavors, that such other laws be enacted as 
will encourage the farmers to raise raw materials, either by lowering the 
land tax, or by bounty, or an excise on such articles as we are liable to im- 
port, by an act passed on the 17th of November last, and other articles of a 
like nature; or by either or all of these ways, as the General Court may 
judge proper. 

"We are fully satisfied of the propriety and justice of a duty being paid 
immediately, in hard money, by every store-keeper and shop-keeper, when 
they take their license, as well as by inn-holders and retailers of spirituous 
liquors ; and would therefore recommend to the town, that their Representa- 
tive be again instructed to use his influence in this matter. 

" And whereas there is danger of an undue influence being exercised over 
the minds of the members of the General Court, sitting in a populous city 
or town ; we therefore advise the town to charge their Representative again, 
in the most peremptory terms, to exert his best endeavors, that the General 
Court meet in some inland town at the next election. 

" Voted, That said committee should get the above report printed free of 
charge to the town." 

It is due to this committee, and to the people at that day, to 
state that the Commonwealth at that period was in the midst of 
an insurrection, growing out of the embarrassed state of financial 
affairs ; and it is natural to suppose that every effort would be 
made to lighten the bm-dens of taxation ; and if some of the 
measures recommended were not altogether judicious, in the 
estimation of the people at this day, we must remember, that 
the state of things at that period was altogether different from 
Avhat exists at the present time. Their views in relation to the 
free importation of luxuries were the perfection of wisdom ; and 
their fears of the influence of large cities and towns upon legis- 



1{)7 

latioji, were not without foundation. History has made it pro- 
verbial, that ' Paris is France,' and that the French capital not 
only influences the legislation of that country, but, in fact, 
puts down one dynasty and puts up another, at its will and 
pleasure, not only without the consent, but even without the 
previous knowledge or suspicion of France. And when we see, 
in our own national capital, that a strong array of military is 
deemed necessary to hold and protect the property and records 
of the Government, we almost wish that our capital was situated 
elsewhere. But at the same time it is obvious, that the location 
of the seat of government, especially of a nation, will, of itself, 
build up a large community ; so that the evils dreaded cannot 
be entirely avoided. '• Where the carcass is, there will the 
eagles be gathered together." 

Keeping constantly in view the evils of too great importations 
of foreign luxuries, the town, in 1787, instructed their Repre- 
sentative, Col. Edward Barnes, as follows : 

" Sir, — As the present critical situation of our public affairs demands tlie 
attention of every well-wisher to the peace and happiness of the community, 
we, your constituents, think fit to express our minds to you on some particu- 
lar points, for your guidance in conducting the important concerns of the 
Commonwealth. 

" As we have heretofore instructed you to use your influence, that the 
General Court be removed from the town of Boston, to some convenient 
inland town ; so we do again lay the same instructions on you respecting 
that matter, so that it be not less than twenty miles distant. 

" ff liercas, we conceive the principal cause of our present distresses, and 
the late rebellion, to arise from the large importation and unrestrained use 
of British goods, and foreign superfluities, to the draining us of our hard- 
earned money, (witness the £200,000 sterling shipped to London the year 
past in one vessel,) and the discouragement of agriculture and our own 
manufactures, the bulwark of the nation : Therefore we again instruct you 
to exert your best endeavors for a reform herein ; that there be an excise 
laid on all foreign goods and superfluities, excepting some necessary articles, 
if any should appear; that every person licensed to sell such articles be 
obliged to pay a duty for liis license, equal to an inn-holder ; and that 
every possible encouragement be given for the raising of raw materials, by 
lowering tlie land tax, and by giving a bounty on sheep, wool, hemp, and 
flax. 

"That you use your influence that the money paid towards the discharge 
of the foreign debt, be solely paid out of such monies, as shall arise from 
imposts and excise. 

" That special care be taken that the Confederation of the thirteen United 
States, be maintained and strengthened." 
26 



198 

Nothing of special moment occurred in the town during the 
residue of the century. The burdens of the war passed away, 
and a state of prosperity was approacliing. The adoption 
of the Federal Constitution gave the power of regulating trade 
and the currency to the General Government ; and measures 
were adopted, at the first Congress, which checked in some 
degree, the importations, and enabled the Government to realize 
from imposts, something towards the payment of the public 
debt. 

The nineteenth century opened with a general lamentation 
at the loss of the great and good man who had led our armies 
through the revolutionary struggle, aided in the establishment 
of our civil institutions, and filled the office of the first President 
of the United States. To express their grief at the loss, and 
to testify their respect for the memory of Washington, the 
people of Marlborough assembled, on the 22d of February, 
1800, agreeably to previous arrangements, when a Eulogy was 
delivered by Joseph Brigham, Esq. The exercises were opened 
with solemn prayer by Rev. Mr. Packard, and a suitable dirge 
by the choir. The people also testified their grief by wearing 
suitable badges of mourning for thirty days — the males wear- 
ing crape upon the left arm, and the females crape or black 
ribbons. 

In 1809, the inhabitants of Marlborough voted, in town 
meeting, " That the morals and prosperity of many persons are 
greatly injured in consequence of the retailers selling spirituous 
liquors, which are drank in the shops contrary to law, and that 
the Selectmen be directed to withhold their approbation for 
license to retailers of spirituous liquors, who shall offend in 
future as above-mentioned, and cause them to be prosecuted 
for their ofl'ense." Thus did Marlborough, more than half a 
century ago, adopt a policy which some towns would do well 
to imitate at the present day. It is rather a reproach upon 
us, that we, in this day of light upon that subject, should 
allow an evil among us which they would not tolerate. 

Having brought the civil or political history of the town up 
to the commencement of the present century, we will recur to 
the ecclesiastical, which in those days occupied a large share 
of public attention. We have seen that Rev. Mr. Smith was 



199 

dismissed in 1798. For about five years the town was desti- 
tute of a settled minister. Various attempts were made to 
obtain one, but their efforts were unav^ailing. They found 
it dilhcult to agree upon a man, and more difficult to induce 
one to accept their call. 

Knowing, by sad experience, thnt it was not easy for them 
to act harmoniously in the selection of a minister, and finding 
a diversity of opinion already developing itself, the town united 
with the church in setting apart the 6th day of August, 1778, 
"for fasting and prayer, to supplicate Divine aid and direction, 
in order to their proceeding in a method to re-settle a gospel 
minister among them ; " and Rev. Mr. Whitney of North- 
borough, Rev. Mr. Sumner of Shrewsbury, Rev. Mr. Newell of 
Stow, Rev. Mr. Parkman of Westborough, and Rev. Mr. Stojie 
of Southborough, were invited to lead the devotions, and aid 
them by their counsels. 

In January, 1779, the town concurred with the church in 
making choice of Mr. Joel Foster as their minister, with a 
salary of one hundred pounds, graduated on Indian corn at 
three shillings per bushel, and a handsome sum as a settlement. 
But though they had the labors and advice of the neighboring 
churches to induce unity, it appears that their divisions were 
too deeply seated to 'go out by their prayer and fasting.' For 
immediately after the call was given, Thomas Howe, Josiah 
Stow, Jabez Rice, and thirty-two others, mostly from the east- 
erly part of the town, addressed a letter to the candidate, in 
which they declare tliat there are two hundred and thirty-nine 
voters in Marlborough, and that only fifty-eight voted for him ; 
and that they will pay no part of his salary, unless they are 
compelled to ; that they have many reasons for adopting that 
course, but to state them would stir up strife." Under these 
circumstances, Mr. Foster declined the invitation. But not 
satisfied with this, the town was called together again, when it 
appeared that there were one himdred and thirty-seven for 
renewing the invitation, and only twenty against it. The same 
salary and settlement as before offered, were again voted by 
about the same majority. But in the mean time, Mr. Foster 
had agreed to settle at New Salem, and so again declined the 
call. 

At a meeting held November 20, 1780, the town voted to 



200 

concur with the church in appointing December 20th as a day 
of fasting and prayer, for Divine aid in selecting a minister; 
and Rev. Messrs. Newell, Whitney and Sumner, were invited 
to lead their devotions. In April, 1781, they voted, seventy- 
two to sixty-seven, to give Rev. Ebenezer Grosvenor a call, on 
a salary of ninety pounds, lawful money, and a settlement of 
eighty pounds ; but the invitation was declined, probably on 
the ground of the division in the vote. 

In February, 1T83, they made choice of Mr. John Mellen as 
their minister, by a vote of seventy-four to thirty-four, with a 
settlement of two hundred pounds, and a salary of one hundred 
pounds. Mr. Mellen declined the call, on acconnt of opposition 
to him, especially in the church. In 1784, a call was extended 
to Mr. Moses Haven, with a salary of one hundred pounds, and 
a settlement of one hundred and fifty pounds, who, after taking 
the advice of his ministering brethren, declined the invitation 
on the ground of " want of sufficient encouragement from the 
town — the coldness and neutrality of many, and the opposi- 
tion of others." 

In each of the above cases, there appears to have been a 
large minority opposed to the call, or to the salary. Whether 
this opposition proceeded from the same individuals in each 
case, does not appear ; or whether it had reference to particular 
doctrinal tenets, is not stated. Certain it is, that the elements of 
opposition existed, and occasions enough occurred to bring 
them into action, much to the annoyance, and somewhat to 
the hinderance of the growth of the town. 

But after about seven years' trial and destitution of a settled 
minister, Mr. Asa Packard, of Bridgewater, received and ac- 
cepted a call, and was ordained, March 23, 1785. This day 
was long remembered from the fact that the snow upon the 
ground was so deep as to cover the tops of their fences, not- 
withstanding there had been a recent thaw, which greatly 
settled the snow, so that in freezing it became sufficiently solid 
to bear up a team. The people went to the ordination in their 
sleighs, upon the crust, passing across their lots, over the tops 
of walls and rail-fences without difficulty. The depth of snow 
was so remarkable, that it became, and continued for a long 
time to be, a household standard of comparison — " the deepest 
snow we have had since the year Mr. Packard was ordained." 



201 

Mr. Packard was settled on a salary of one hundred pounds, 
" and twenty cords of good marketable oak wood, cut and 
brought to the door annually, so long as he remains our min- 
ister." They also voted him a settlement of three hundred 
pounds, one half to be paid in one year, and the other half in 
two years from his ordination. 

Mr. Packard was a nativ^e of Bridgcwatcr, and son of Jacob 
and Dorothy (Perkins) Packard. Jacob was son of Solomon, 
who was son of Zaccheus, who was the son of Samuel, the 
original emigrant, who, with his wife and child, came from 
Windham, near Hingham, England, in the ship Diligent of 
IpsAvich, with one hundred and thirty-three passengers, John 
Martin, master, and settled in Hingham, 1638. From Hing- 
ham, Samuel Packard moved to Bridge water, and became the 
ancestor of a numerous family in that town and elsewhere. 
Asa was graduated at Harvard University, in 1783. 

Like many other young men of that day, he entered into the 
Revoluutionary service. He enlisted as a fifer, at the age of six- 
teen years. In an engagement near Haerlem Heights, in 1776, 
a companion, who had made great boast of his bravery, seized 
Mr. Packard's fife, and handing him his musket in return, fled 
to a place of safety — preferring, it would seem, the music he 
could make with a stolen fife, to that made by the balls of the 
enemy. Mr. Packard, thus armed, engaged in the conflict, but 
soon received a wound which nearly proved fatal. The ball 
entered his back, just above his hip; and though an attempt 
was made to extract it, yet so severe was the operation, that the 
surgeon feared he would die in his hands, and so was induced 
to desist. A severe illness followed in consequence, and when 
sufficiently recovered, he left the army and retnrned home, 
and commenced a course of studies preparatory to entering 
college. 

The ball he received was never extracted, but remained in 
his back during his life. Mr. Packard was a man of great 
facetiousness, and often alluded in pleasantry to the circum- 
stance of his having fought and bled for his country. He once 
in a merry circle said : " I bear about in my body a weighty 
testimonial of my bravery." To which a jovial comjmiion 
replied, " I think, from the position of the wound, our hero 
must have been playing a retreat." " Playing a retreat," said 



202 

Mr. Packard ; "I had a musket in my hand, and was found 
skillful as a grenadier.^'' " I think," rejoined the other, " our 
friend must have heen skilled in the motion — ' to the right about 
face'' — and must have performed it when he received his 
wound." The joke was appreciated and enjoyed by Mr. Pack- 
ard as much as by any of the company. 

Mr. Packard married, July 2, 1790, Nancy Quincy, daughter 
of Josiah Quincy, of Braintree, with whom he hved more than 
half a century. They had six children.* Frederick Adol- 
phus was graduated at Harvard, 1814, studied law and com- 
menced practice at Springfield. In 1829, removed to Phila- 
delphia, and took the editorial charge of the publications of 
the American Sunday School Union. In 1847, was elected 
President of Girard College. He resides at Philadelphia. 

Mr. Packard was a man of sprightly talent, and was noted 
for his readiness rather than for his profundity. He had great 
conversational powers, and was remarkable for his eccentricity. 
His sermons were practical rather than doctrinal, and more dis- 
tinguished for happy descriptions of life and manners, than for 
connected views of gospel truths. He was liberal in his theo- 
logical opinions — belonging to what was denominated the 
Arminian school. As Unitarianism developed itself in Massa- 
chusetts, he was considered as coinciding with that class of his 
brethren ; though later in life, his sentiments are supposed to 
have undergone some change. 

Rev. Mr. Field, in his Historical Sketch of the First Church 
in Marlborough, says, respecting his theological opinions : — 
" Perhaps it would be more correct to say, that he never formed 
for himself any definite system of doctrinal belief. His mind 
was more distinguished for its readiness than for its method ; 
and he seems to have held opinions in regard to different doc- 
trines, which were not consistent with each other, and which 
could not have been blended into a logical system. Difterent 
persons, who knew him well, have for this reason classed him 
with different denominations ; since, on some points, his views 
seemed to coincide with Unitarians, and on others with the 
Orthodox standard of doctrine. This was the view entertained 
of his theological opinions by one of the most distinguished 
preachers of New England." 

* See the Genealogy of the family. 



203 

Mr. Packard remained pastor of the first, and in fact the only 
parish in Marlborough, about twenty years, and the people were 
happy under his ministry. At length, in 1805, an unpleasant 
controversy arose on the subject of the site of their meeting- 
house, which ended in the erection of two houses, and ulti- 
mately in two parishes. During this controversy, Mr. Packard 
maintained a neutrality ; though residing within the limits of 
the west parish, his sympathies were naturally with that por- 
tion of the town. It seems that both parties were desirous 
of retaining him, and he continued preaching at the old house 
until the new ones were ready for use. He was then requested 
to take a leading part in the dedication of the house at 
Spring Hill — that being the house built by the town. But 
Mr. Packard, being unwilling to countenance the removal of 
the house from the old common, said, in a letter to the society, 
in November, 1805, " In the house where, at the time of my 
ordination, I expected to spend my strength, I shall continue 
my best services, God willing, till my afflicted people have time 
to change their situation." 

Being called upon to dedicate the house, he said, in a letter 
dated February 7, 1806, to Deacon A])ner Goodale, Chairman of 
the Committee of Dedication, " While the society remains in 
this tempestuous state, it appears to me, a comj)liance with 
your request would naturally be followed with consequences 
seriously injurious to both parties, in a social, temporal, and 
spiritual view. I never covenanted with my people to assist 
them in injuring themselves." 

The delicacy of Mr. Packard's situation will be appreciated, 
when we consider that he was at that time the minister of the 
whole town ; and nearly one half of his parish and church 
were so dissatisfied with the erection of the house at Spring 
Hill, that they had organized and erected a house at the west 
part of the town. He chose to stand aloof, as far as his public 
acts were concerned ; but realizing' that the majority had a 
right to command his services, while he remained their pastor, 
he wisely asked a dismission from the church and society, as 
the best way of avoiding a public approval of the removal of 
the meeting-house, which was the sole cause of the unhappy 
state of feeling. 

This matter was brought, March 6, 1806, before the Marl- 



204 

borough Association, consisting of Rev. Messrs. Peter Whitney, 
Joseph Willard, Jonathan Newell, Moses Adams, Joel Foster, 
Daniel Kellogg, Ezra Ripley, Jeroboam Parker, and Isaac Allen, 
who, after due consideration of the whole subject matter, 
decided unanimously, that the town have a reasonable and legal 
claim to the services of Mr. Packard in the new house, — but 
they add : " As there exists a respectable minority, amounting 
to nearly one-half of the church and town, who appear deter- 
mined not to assemble at Spring Hill, and have taken decided 
steps to become a corporate society — these circumstances have 
suggested conscientious scruples to Mr. Packard's mind, of the 
propriety of taking the lead in the dedication of said meeting- 
house, and of attending his services there in future, and have 
induced him to ask a dissolution of his further pastoral relation 
to the church and people of Marlborough. The Association, 
while they sincerely lament the occasion of it, both on their 
own and the people's account, cannot but acquiesce in his deter- 
mination. 

" The Association are of the opinion that their Rev. brother 
Packard has uniformly manifested a deep and tender concern 
for the peace and best interests of the church and people of the 
town, and are fully convinced, that in all his conduct respect- 
ing the parties in town, and all his representations to the Asso- 
ciation, he has acted in sincerity and with honest intentions, 
and has conscientiously endeavored to be impartial in his state- 
ments and behavior towards the parties, notwithstanding any 
suggestion to the contrary." 

Mr. Packard's request for a dismission from the town was 
granted. As the cause of his taking this step grew out of a 
controversy concerning the location of a new meeting-house, 
which resulted in a division of the church and town into two 
distinct societies, it cannot be out of place, in this connection, 
to give a brief sketch of that unpleasant affair, which excited 
much ill-feeling, engendered lasting animosities, and proved a 
severe drain upon the purses of the inhabitants. In fact, the 
seeds of this controversy were sown seventy or eighty years 
before this division. The inhabitants residing upon the Indian 
plantation, and those in the easterly part of the town, from the 
first, did not harmonize cordially with the people in the central 
and westerly part of the town. This showed itself in petitions 



205 

for dividing the town, or in having two meeting-houses, as we 
have already seen. But the repairing and improving of the 
old house, kept things comparativ^ely quiet, till about the com- 
mencement of the nineteenth century, when a new house 
seemed to be demanded. 

As early as 1796, the subject of erecting a new meeting- 
house was agitated. In 1801, the town voted, ninety-three to 
forty, to build a new house ; but the question of location was 
one of more difficult solution. It was voted that it be located 
on the old spot, and the next day that vote was reconsidered ; 
and a committee of twenty-two was chosen " to look out a 
place to set the new meeting-house." But as nothing definite 
was attained, other committees were appointed, the territory 
surveyed, several spots were designated, and all rejected by 
the town. Finally, on the 4th of June, 1804, after discarding 
all locations proposed, and after many had left the meeting, a 
vote was passed to locate the proposed house at Spring Hill, 
and a committee was chosen to see on what terms a spot could 
be obtained. After some negotiation and delay, on the 7th 
January, 1805, a vote was passed to build a meeting-house at 
Spring Hill, on a site specially designated, on condition that 
certain individuals would prepare the ground for its recep- 
tion ; and a committee, consisting of Uriah Eager, Dea. Abner 
Goodale, Joseph Brigham, Esq., Micah Sherman, John Loring, 
Enoch Corey, Capt. Jonathan Weeks, Lovell Brigham, Capt. 
Daniel Brigham, Capt. Lovell Barnes, and Capt. William 
Wesson, was chosen with full power, acting by a majority, 
to purchase materials, erect and complete the house, and sell 
the pews at public auction. The committee entered at once 
upon the discharge of their duties, contracted for materials, and 
early in February made a contract with Mr. C. Kendall to erect 
and complete the house at Spring Hill. 

Immediately on the passage of the vote to locate the meeting- 
house at Spring Hill, the inhabitants of the westerly part of the 
town, to the number of about eighty, convened at the house of 
Capt. George Williams, and resolved that it would be for their 
interest and happiness to separate from the inhabitants in the 
easterly part of the town, and form a distinct religious society, 
precinct or town. They at the same time chose a committee of 
their leading citizens, to take the whole subject into considera- 



206 

tion, including a spot on which to locate a meeting-house. 
Subsequently, they presented a petition to the town to allow 
them to be set off, " with all those privileges and immunities 
which appertain to towns within the Commonwealth." On 
the refusal of the town to grant their prayer, they petitioned 
the Legislature to be set off as a town, where they met with a 
refusal. 

Meantime they were taking active measures to build a 
meeting-house at the West End, as it was generally denom- 
inated ; and more than five thousand dollars were readily sub- 
scribed for that purpose. Before proceeding thus far, however, 
they caused a meeting of the inhabitants of tire town to be 
called, to see if they would reconsider their vote locating their 
house at Spring Hill. On coming together, the building com- 
mittee informed the meeting that it was too late to reconsider 
the vote, as they had already bound the town by a solemn con- 
tract with Mr. Kendall, to erect the house on that site. The 
petitioners for a division of the town then informed the Select- 
men and the building committee of their resolution to build a 
meeting-house in the westerly part of the township, and re- 
quested the committee to adopt a smaller plan, as they should 
not worship in that house, if it were erected. 

But the committee, which had proceeded in hot haste thus 
far, were not to be deterred from the erection of a house large 
enough to accommodate the Avhole town. And thus the work 
went on. The committee, clothed with full authority, pro- 
ceeded as rapidly as possible to erect their house at Spring 
Hill, and the committee of the inhabitants of the West End, 
to erect their house on the site selected for that purpose. The 
house at Spring Hill was raised in the week commencing Mon- 
day, June 24:, 1805, and the raising of the house at the West 
End occupied nearly a week, commencing Wednesday, August 
14, 1805. 

These houses were both opened for public worship on the 
same day, viz., April 27, 1806. For years there was not merely 
a rivalry, but a somewhat bitter animosity existing between the 
two parishes, which unhappily disturbed religious association, 
and even social intercourse. The pecuniary burden imposed 
upon the people was severe. The preparation of the site for 
Spring Hill meeting-house cost nearly four thousand dollars, all 



207 

of which, with the exception of about six hundred dollars, was 
borne by individuals. The cost of Spring Hill meeting-house, 
exclusive of the cost of preparing the site, was not far from 
twenty thousand dollars, and entailed a heavy pecuniary burden 
upon the building committee, who, in some of their transac- 
tions, had incurred personal liabilities. And while the people in 
the west part of the town were called upon to pay their share 
of the expense of this large and costly house, they erected 
one for themselves, at an expense of some eight thousand 
dollars. 

After much opposition, the west part of the town succeeded 
in obtaining an act of incorporation, on the 23d of February, 
1808, by the name of the Second Parish in Marlborough. The 
division of the town into two societies, involved the division of 
the church, which, to the honor of its members be it said, was 
conducted on fair and equitable grounds. After the dismission 
of Mr. Packard, the church made choice of Rev. Mr. Puffer, of 
Berlin, as their moderator. Some question arising, the mod- 
erator convened the church, which agreed to call a Council. 
The church at that time consisted of forty-seven male mem- 
bers, twenty-four of whom belonged to the West branch of the 
church, and twenty-three, including all the deacons, to the 
East branch. 

The Council, after hearing the parties, and considering the 
subject, came to this result : 

" That each branch of the church of Christ in Marlborough, have full 
liberty, without any offense to the other branch, to attend upon and enjoy 
all the special ordinances of the gospel, and to exercise all the powers and 
privileges of a regular Christian church, in separate and distinct bodies, at 
such times and in such places, as each branch may choose for itself, until a 
reunion of the church may be effected; or some legal decision be. had on 
the state of the town." 

They also provided that in case the west part of the town be 
legally incorporated, any member shall be at liberty to attach 
himself to either church ; and that the church projierty shall be 
equally divided. And until such division shall take place, all 
the vessels of the sanctuary may be freely used by either 
branch, on different days. Both branches of the church accept- 
ed this recommendation, " without a dissenting voice." 

The West Parish being incorporated, on the 23d of March 



208 

Rev. Asa Packard, who had labored with the society since his 
dismission from the town, was installed over the West Parish, 
and retained his pastoral relation nntil May 12, 1819, when he 
took a dismission, and removed to Lancaster, where he resided 
till his death, which occurred March 20, 1843, in the eighty- 
fifth year of his age. 

After the dismission of Mr. Packard, Rev. Seth Alden was 
settled over the West Parish, November 3, 1819, and dismissed, 
April 8, 1834. Rev. William Morse was installed, June 25, 
1834, and dismissed, July 14, 1844. Rev. Horatio Alger was 
installed, January 22, 1845, and dismissed, July 18, 1859. 

The First, or East church, after the dismission of Mr. Packard, 
settled, November 2, 1808, Mr. Sylvester F. Bucklin, who was 
dismissed June 20, 1832. Mr. Bucklin continued his residence 
in Marlborough, where he was highly respected as a citizen, 
and died in June, 1860. He was a useful and valued member 
of the church and society of which he was formerly pastor ; thus 
refuting, in his case, the oft-repeated declaration, " that a dis- 
missed minister makes a troublesome parishioner." After the 
dismission of Mr. Bucklin, Mr. Charles Forbush was ordained 
pastor, August 21, 1833, and dismissed, March 26, 1834. After 
the society had undergone some transition of name and senti- 
ment. Rev. John N. Goodhue was ordained their pastor, May 4, 
1836, and died September 13, 1839, aged twenty-nine years and 
eight months. Mr. George E. Day was ordained, December 2, 
1840, and dismissed, December 23, 1847. Rev. Daniel L. 
Ogden was installed, April 26, 1848, and dismissed, July 23, 
1850. During the summer of 1852, their meeting-house was 
thoroughly repaired, at an expense of about one thousand dol- 
lars, and furnished with a new organ. It was opened for public 
worship in September, and on the evening of November 10th, 
it took fire and was entirely destroyed. It is supposed to have 
been the work of an incendiary. A new house was erected, at 
a cost of about ten thousand dollars, and opened for public 
worship, August 31, 1853, when Rev. Levi A. Field was 
ordained.* 

* This part of the history of the town might be extended much further ; but 
the published ' Historical Sketch ' of Rev. Levi A. Field, and the contemplated 
publication of Historical Discourses by Rev. Horatio Alger, are so full on the 
subject of the Ecclesiastical History of the two Parishes, as to supersede the 
necessity of enlarging upon it here. 




THE LAWRENCE MEETING-HOUSE, 
^t FeltoiTville, 

ERECTED M>\- 



209 

There is also a Methodist society in town. Mr. Phinehas 
Sawyer, from Harvard, came to Marlborough, with his family, 
about 1800. They were of the Methodist persuasion, and had 
meetings at their house for a number of years. Their numbers 
increased, and in 1827, they erected a brick meeting-house in 
the north-easterly part of the town. They worshiped at that 
house till 1852, when it was burned down. The main part of 
the society built a house at Rock Bottom, Stow, and the residue 
of the society built a house in the centre of Marlborough, which 
was opened for divine worship in October, 1853. The present 
number of communicants is one hundred and five. The disci- 
pline of the Methodists being Episcopal, and their Conference 
assigning the preachers to their circuits for a limited time, the 
number Avho have labored with the society has been great. 
Their present preacher is Rev. Augustus D. Bailey. 

The Universalists formed a society in Marlborough, about 
1818. In 1829, they erected a meeting-house in the East village. 
They have had a number of preachers, among whom were 
Rev. Messrs. Kilham, Greenwood, and Davis. They arc 
now without a pastor. 

The Baptists have a small society at Feltonville, formed 
about 1844. They have a neat and comfortable house, erected 
in 1851. Rev. Mr. Wakefield has labored with them for 
several years. 

There is also a Roman Catholic society in town. Their 
church, erected a few years since, is situated on elevated 
ground, and commands an extensive and delightful prospect. 

The citizens of Feltonville are now erecting another meet- 
ing-house in their village, designed for a Union society. 



CHAPTER X. 

EDUCATION. 

Our Fathers' Views of Education — Law requiring Schools — School in Marl- 
borough established — Loss of Records — School Houses built — Brigham 
School Fund — Plan of supporting and distributing the Schools in 1790 — 
Schools remodeled in 1803 — New District created in 1812 — Appropria- 
tions from 1834 to 1860 — The Academy — High School — Improved Con- 
dition of the Schools. 

Nothing, save the great cause of religion, engaged the early 
attention of our Puritan Fathers more than the education of 
the young. With them, piety and sound learning were the 
foundation on which they hoped to rear our free institutions. 
They were fully aware that religion, without knowledge, 
would lead to fanaticism ; and that knowledge, without relig- 
ion, would end in licentiousness. Their great and grand idea 
was to combine the two, and to develop the intellectual and 
moral nature of man at the same time. They had no sj^m- 
pathy with that system which would do things "to the halves." 
They were sensible that education, in the intellectual sense of 
the term, simply furnished facilities to action ; but whether this 
action were right or wrong, would depend upon the restraining, 
guiding principles of our holy religion. They wisely foresaw 
that, as the universe was preserved, and the heavenly bodies 
were kept in their spheres by the well-balanced action of the 
centrifugal and centripetal forces, so man, the noblest work of 
God, to answer the great end of his being, must be moved for- 
ward by intellectual power, and kept within his sphere by the 
gravitating power of the Sun of Righteousness. 

With these views, they early adopted measures for the gen- 
eral diffusion of knowledge. In 1647, an Act was passed for 
the support of schools, the preamble of which is so expressive 
of their views, that it deserves a place here. 



211 

" It being one of the chief projects of Satan, to keep men from the knowl- 
edge of the Scriptures ; as in former times keeping them in unknown 
tongues, so in these latter times by persuading from the use of tongues, that 
so at least the true sense and meaning of the original might be clouded and 
corrupted by false glosses of deceivers ; to the end that learning may not 
be buried in the graves of our forefathers, in church and commonwealth, the 
Lord assisting our endeavors : 

" It is therefore ordered by this Court and authority thereof, that every 
township within this jurisdiction, after the Lord hath increased them to the 
number of fifty householders, shall forthwith appoint one within their towns 
to teach all such children as shall resort to him, to write and read, whose 
wages shall be paid either by the parents or masters of such children, or by 
the inhabitants in general, by way of supply, as the major part of those 
that order the prudentials of the town shall appoint ; provided that those 
who send their children be not oppressed by paying much more than they 
can have them taught for in other towns." 

This was the origin of the common school system which has 
contributed so much to the prosperity and glory of New Eng- 
land, by rearing up a class of men fitted for all the active duties 
of life, not only within her own jurisdiction, but throughout 
the country. 

Marlborough, as we have already seen, as early as 1696, 
employed a school-master to teach the youth " to read English 
once a day at least, also to write and cast accounts." Subse- 
quently, in 1698, the town voted to build a school-house, 
and Mr. Jonathan Johnson was employed as a teaclier for 
several years. In 1700, a contract was made for building 
another school-house. There appears about this, time to have 
been some neglect on the ])art of the town, and in 1701 they 
were fined for not keeping a school-master. This fine had 
its desired effect ; for in December of that year, it was voted, 
'• That Thomas Rice and Isaac Amsden doo go forth with all 
speed convenient, in the town's name and behalf, to doo what 
they can to provide a school-master, qualified according to law, 
and to treat him with terms for the half year or a twelvemontii, 
as they shall think fit." It seems that they met with some 
success ; for in 1702, £7 were paid to John Holman, of Milton, 
*' for teaching our children and youth in reading, writing, and 
casting accounts; and also in Latin, as occasion is, and in doing 
the duty of school-master, four months." 

In 1715, it was voted to build a new school-house, 24 feet by 
18, and 7 feet between joints. In 1718, £47 were appropriated 



212 

for the schools. At that day, and for years after, the schools 
were kept in different parts of the township, and frequently in 
private houses. 

Unfortunately, the loss of the Marlborough records deprive us 
of any consecutive account of the schools for nearly half a 
century; though the records of the proprietors frequently allude 
to the school-houses, and the school is referred to, as one of the 
fixed institutions of the town. 

In 1745, at a meeting of the inhabitants of Marlborough, reg- 
ularly held, ^^ Voted, That the school shall be kept at the several 
parts of the town, as heretofore." And Samuel Witt, Colonel 
Williams, Thomas Hapgood, Thomas Brigham, and Jotham 
Brigham, were chosen a committee " to order the schools as 
above." 

This vote recognizes a usage well understood by the people 
at the time — " be kept at the several parts of the town, as 
heretofore.^^ The custom which prevailed at that day in Marl- 
borough, and in the country towns generally, was to employ a 
male teacher, who would keep a certain number of weeks in 
one part of the town, and then move to another. These 
" moving schools," as they were frequently denominated, fur- 
nished an opportunity for the children in every part of the 
township to enjoy the benefits of the school system. And the 
fact that some of their most prominent men, as seen above, were 
chosen to " order the schools," shows that the people regarded 
them with interest. 

At a meeting held September, 1745, it was " Voted, That 
all those families that live more than a mile and a half from 
either of the two school-houses, where the school has been 
kept the past year, shall draw their proportion of money out of 
the school rate." 

This vote recognizes the fact that there were two school- 
houses in town at that time, and that the people were disposed 
to make some consideration to those who resided at a distance 
from the school-houses. What wages were given at that day, 
to teachers, appears by the receipt of Samuel Brigham, who 
acknowledges the payment of £57 10s. old tenor, in full for 
keeping school two quarters in 1747. 

March 13, 1748, " On the petition of Samuel Jones and 
others, at the north-westerly part of the town, it was put to 



213 

vote, agreeably to said petition, whether the petitioners should 
hav^e their proportional part of the school according to their pay, 
and it passed in the affirmative." 

At a meeting of the town, held May 15, 1749, the subject of 
the schools was fully considered ; and as the action then taken 
casts considerable light upon the subject, we will give the 
record entire. 

" Voted and chose a committee of seven men, to apportion the school in 
six societies or squadrons, and the scholars to meet at the same school- 
houses, where the school has been lately kept, and to be settled according* 
to the pay of each squadron, taking the north-westerly corner for one 
squadron. 

" Agreeably to the vote of the town, the committee, namely, Dea. Andrew 
Rice, Major John Bruce, John Warren, Daniel Harrington, John Banister, 
John Weeks, and Abraham Howe, have made the following division ; that is, 
the squadron west of the meeting-house, the scholars are to meet at the 
school-house near Noah Church's, or the old tavern place, thirteen weeks, 
four days, and three-fourths of a day, yearly. And the scholars are to meet 
in the squadron, at the west end of the town, at the school-house near Moses 
Howe's, six weeks, three days, and two-thirds of one day, yearly. And the 
north-west squadron, the scholars are to meet at such a place as the squadron 
shall think proper, two weeks and four days, yearly ; and the squadron east- 
erly of the meeting-house, the scholars are to come to the school-house near 
Joseph Johnson's, sixteen weeks, one day, and one-third of a day, yearly ; 
and the squadron northerly of the meeting-house, at the school-house near 
John Hapgood's, seven weeks and two-thirds of a day, yearly ; and the 
squadron at the east end of the town, at the school-house near Joseph 
Baker's, five weeks, four days, and two-thirds of a day, yearly. 

" The one-third, two-thirds, and three-fourths mentioned above, are added 
to the north-west squadron, to make that up three weeks." 

The above arrangement of the schools appears to have been 
satisfactory to the people ; for the records show no action of the 
town, except to choose a committee to employ a teacher, for a 
number of years. At length, on the 25th of October, 1762, 
when the school-master must have been " abroad," the inhab- 
itants voted, " That the town will build or repare the school- 
housen in the several squadrants in the town, Where they Now 
are,'- and chose a committee of six to carry said vote into 
effect. 

It appears by the subsequent action of the town, that the 
committee caused to be erected six new houses, viz., one near 
Robert Baker's, at the east end of the town ; one near the heirs 

28 



2U 

of Joseph Johnson, easterly of the meeting-house ; one near 
the widow Mary Brace's ; one near the meeting-house, where 
the old house formerly stood ; one near Jacob Felton's ; and 
one at Robin Hill, so called. 

During the exciting period which preceded the opening of 
the Revolution, nothing new appears to have taken place in 
relation to the schools. And during the Revolution we could 
hardly expect any particular improvement in the condition of 
the school system. One event occurred, however, during this 
period, which deserves notice, as it has a direct bearing upon 
the cause of education in Marlborough. Captain Ephraim 
Brigham, a highly respected citizen, in the year 1771, left 
a donation of £111 to the town, to remain as a perma- 
nent fund, the interest of which was to be " annually ex- 
pended in hiring some suitable person to keep a school in 
the middle of the town, to teach young people the arts of 
writing and cyphering." This fund was to be under the 
control of the Selectmen for the time being, who were made 
trustees for that purpose, and who were required to see that the 
interest was annually expended, agreeably to the provisions of 
the will. This fund, at that time, and for a long period after, 
was highly important to the young people of the town. Being 
confined to writing and arithmetic, it furnished the older schol- 
ars an opportunity, as they were about leaving school, to perfect 
themselves in those branches which would qualify them for the 
transaction of the active business of life. Many a young man, 
of Marlborough birth, has had reason to remember with grati- 
tude the worthy giver. Such instances of liberality, in fitting 
the young for usefulness, should be gratefully cherished by 
every lover of his race. 

" The Brigham School," as it was called, was kept in the 
central district of the town, after the Avinter schools had closed, 
which was generally about the first of March, and was open to 
scholars of a prescribed age, from all parts of the township, 
and furnished about a month's additional instruction for the 
older scholars. This fund has since been merged in the gen- 
eral school appropriation, so that the interest is now employed, 
like the annual school grants, for the benefit of all the children 
in the place. 

During some portion of the Revolution, the town supported 



215 

a grammar school, in which the languages were taught ; but 
the heavy burdens of the war induced them to suspend it for 
a time. In 1779, it was voted " to provide a school-house for 
the northerly part of the town, and to choose a committee to 
purchase a house of Mr. Lesure, or build a new one, as they 
shall think proper." In 1781, they voted " to build a school- 
house for the ' Farm ' squadron, and move the Cook school- 
house, so as to accommodate the east squadron, near John 
Stow's." 

The records do not show the amount of money appropriated 
for the support of the schools; the custom being to grant so 
much for the "town's use," or ''to pay town charges." It is a 
matter of regret, that the records of most of our towns are so 
meagre. We sometimes find an important subject before a 
town, a committee of some of their principal men selected to 
examine and report upon the whole subject, and when we come 
to the record of the report, we are informed " that the committee 
submitted a detailed report, which was accepted." In this way 
the whole value of the record is lost ; and as the files of most of 
our towns are not preserved, the public are left in profound 
ignorance ; the record not being worth the paper on which it is 
written. How long will our towns suffer such evils to continue ? 

For several years after the close of the war, no particular 
change appears to have been made in relation to the schools. 
Committees were chosen, from time to time, to employ masters, 
and apportion the money to the different squadrons. In De- 
cember, 1789, " William Morse, Silas Jewell, Samuel Howe, 
Alpheus Woods, Joseph Howe, Daniel Stevens, and Heman 
Stow, were chosen a committee to consider an Act of the Gen- 
eral Court respecting keeping schools, passed June 25, 1789, 
and report to the town some plan to carry the same into execu- 
tion." 

At a meeting held January following, the committee submit- 
ted a detailed report, which we will give entire, as it contains 
the best evidence we have of the number and condition of the 
schools in the town. 

" We, the Committee chosen by the inhabitants of the town of Marlbo- 
rough, on the 14th of December, 1789, to consider an Act of the General 
Court respecting keeping schools, passed June 25, 1789, requiring that every 
town or district containing two hundred families or householders, shall be 



216 

provided with a Grammar School Master of good moral character, well in- 
structed in the Latin, Greek and English Languages, and that in addition 
thereto, shall be provided with a school-master of good morals, to teach chil- 
dren to read, and instruct them in the English language, as well as in arith- 
metic, orthography, and decent behavior, for such a term of time as shall be 
equivalent to twelve months for each of said schools in such year, beg leave 
to report, that whereas upon examination, they find the number of families 
in Marlborough to exceed two hundred, and whereas the above named act 
requires that every town or district containing two hundred families or 
householders, should have two schools, each of which is to he kept for such 
a term of time as shall be equivalent to twelve months for each school in 
each year, they also think it advisable, in order that the town may be pro- 
vided with able school-masters, that the Selectmen for the time being, be a 
committee to provide a school-master duly qualified to keep said schools, as 
the said Act directs. 

" Your Committee would also report, that it appears the most equitable that 
each school should be kept an equal term of time, in each school-house ; 
that is, seven weeks and three days in each school-house in each year. It 
further appears to your Committee the most equitable, that the school which 
is now kept in the school-house near Mr. Robert Baker's, be continued there, 
until it shall have completed seven weeks and three days ; that it then 
remove to the school-house near Mr. Amos Ray's, to be kept there seven 
weeks and three days ; that it then remove to the school-house near Mr. 
Noah Howe's, there to be kept seven weeks and three days ; that it then 
remove to the school-house near Mr. Stephen Felton's, there to be kept seven 
weeks and three days ; that it then remove to the school-house near the 
meeting-house, there to be kept seven weeks and three days ; then to remove 
to the school-house near Mr. Winslow Brigham's, there to be kept seven 
weeks and three days ; that it then remove to the school-house near Mr. 
Alexander Newton's, there to be kept seven weeks and three days, which 
completes twelve months for one school. 

" Your Committee think it equitable, that when the school that is now kept 
near Mr. Baker's remove to the school-house near Mr. Ray's, another school 
should begin at the school-house near Mr. Alexander Newton's, on the Farm, 
and be regulated, as to the time of keeping and removes, according to the 
rules prescribed for the above mentioned school. 

" Your Committee further judge it advisable, that the Selectmen procure, 
as soon as may be, school-masters to keep school in the following school- 
houses, viz. : In that near Mr. Winslow Brigham's, in that near the meeting- 
house, and in that near Stephen Felton's ; to keep in each school-house 
seven weeks and three days, which will make up that time which shall have 
expired between the first of October, 1789, and that time in which the last 
mentioned school is to be opened in the school-house on the Farm. And 
that the schools may not interfere one with the other, but that they may be 
conducted in such a manner as to answer the end for which they are in- 
tended, it is the opinion of your Committee, that they be under the direction 
of the Selectmen for the time being, who from time to time shall make such 



217 

alterations as they shall judge best, provided they do not infringe those rules 
which are above prescribed." 

It appears by this report that there were in 1790, seven school 
districts, or squadrons, as they were in the habit of calling 
them, and that each district had its school-house. It also 
appears that each district had a school of fifteen weeks in a 
year. 

From 1790 to 1803, nothing in particular appears on the 
records of the town, in relation to the schools. Several new 
school-houses were erected, generally about twenty-four feet 
square ; some of them with a porch about six or seven feet 
square. The money raised for the support of schools seems to 
have been included in the general grant of money for the 
town's use ; so that the sum expended for the schools does not 
appear upon the records. 

In 1803, a large committee, consisting of Benjamin Rice, 
Aaron Brigham, Lovell Barnes, Silas Felton, Stephen Ames, 
Daniel Brigham, and Abner Goodalc, submitted a report in 
relation to the schools, which was accepted by the town. The 
report is as follows : 

" We, the Committee chosen by the inhabitants of the town of Marl- 
borough, on the 8th of March, J 803, ' to see if any and what regulations 
should be made in the town schools,' having taken the matter into considera- 
tion, do report that it is advisable to adopt tlie following regulations, viz: 
That a suitable person be provided to teach all such scholars in the town as 
may wish to learn the Latin and Greek Languages. 

" That suitable English Grammar school-masters be provided, to keep the 
following terms of time, at each of the school-houses, viz : 

" At the Centre School-house, No. 1, 

" At the South-west " No. 2, . 

" At the North-west " No. 3, . 

» At the North " No. 4, . 

" At the North-east " No. 5, . 

" At the East, " No. 6, . 

" At the South-east " No. 7, . 

" That the aforesaid schools shall commence annually at each school- 
house as near the middle of November as may be. 

" That the town shall choose, by ballot, a Committee of seven persons, 
one for each school-house ; and it shall be the duty of said Committee to 
carry the following regulations into effect. Also to provide wood for said 



17 weeks 


15 




14 




18 




13 




15 




13 





218 

schools, and regulate them ; and with the minister and such other persons as 
may wish to attend, visit said schools. 

" That after the present year, the aforesaid Committee shall he chosen at 
the annual March Meeting for the choice of Town Officers. And as no 
legacy we can bequeath to posterity is so valuable as a' good education, 
your Committee do further report, that in addition to the other schooling, 
the aforesaid Committee shall provide suitable school-mistresses to keep 
school seven weeks and a half annually, in each town school-house, and 
regulate said woman schools according to their discretion." 

The foregoing report, which was accepted by the town, 
placed the schools on a more permanent basis, and gave a new 
impulse to the cause of education. The sum expended for the 
schools does not appear upon the town records. The portion 
of the town grant expended for edtication was left to be decided 
by the Selectmen, who apportioned the money to the several 
districts. This new regulation annulled the old system of 
" moving schools," and introduced the employment of female 
teachers, which probably had not prevailed up to that time. 
Before this period, the schools were kept the year rotind by a 
male teacher, holding a session first in one district, and then in 
another. This policy deprived many of the older scholars, 
who were about finishing their schooling, of the opporttmity of 
attending at the season of the year when they were most at 
leisure, or else of going three or fotir miles to school ; and the 
smaller scholars were deprived of all instruction, except when 
the school was kept in their own district. But the change 
gave them a chance to attend in their own neighborhood, when 
they were most at leisure ; and the employment of female 
teachers in the sttmmer gave the small children a privilege 
greater than they had enjoyed before ; and so, in fact, doubled 
the usefulness of the schools, without increasing materially the 
expense. 

In 1812, after a struggle of several years, a new school-house 
was erected, and a new district created near Feltonville, then 
known as the Mills. Stibsequently, the district near the centre 
of the town was divided, and a school-house erected at Spring 
Hill. This was followed by the creation of another district, in 
the south-west part of the town, and a school-house was erected 
sottth of the pond, to accommodate the people in that quarter, 
and relieve other schools which were thought to be too large. 



219 

In 1827, the Legislature passed a general law in relation to 
the schools in the Commonwealth, which gave a new spring to 
the cause of education. Up to this period, there had been 
no committee required by law to be chosen by the towns, to 
take the charge or oversight of the schools. Where the towns 
were districted, the people in district, or in town meeting, 
elected a committee, who in many cases, considered their duty 
performed when they had employed a teacher and furnished 
fuel for the school. The examination of teachers and of the 
schools was, by custom, devolved upon the minister, and in 
some cases upon the Selectmen of the town. But the Act of 
1827 created an inspecting committee, and gave them the 
general supervision of the schools. But the measiue which 
has done more to improve the schools in Massachusetts than 
any other, was the creation of the Board of Education, in 1837. 
This Act was preceded by an Act, 1834, establishing a school 
fund for the improvement of the common schools. These 
Acts requiring returns from the school committees, which the 
towns were compelled by law to elect, brought, for the first 
time in our history, the condition of all the schools in the Com- 
monwealth before the public ; and through the medium of the 
Board of Education, the improvements made in one part of the 
State, were made known to every other part ; and hence a 
spirit of just emulation was excited, which has done much for 
the cause of education. 

We dwell upon this with the more satisfaction, as tlie pros- 
perity of the community, and the permanence of our institu- 
tions, depend in a great degree upon the general diffusion of 
knowledge. And though colleges are highly important in their 
place, and should be sustained by every friend of education ; 
yet the direct advantages of these literary institutions are, and 
always must be, confined to a very small portion of our popula- 
tion. It is upon the common schools, that the great mass of 
the people must ever depend for all the literary advantages 
which they enjoy. And one great blessing attendant upon the 
town school is, that it is open to all classes, without distinction. 
Here the rich and the poor enjoy the same privilege. Here, 
more than any where else, all caste and distinction is super- 
seded, and all may partake of the feast of knowledge, "without 
money and without price." While invidious distinctions are 



220 

practically recognized in all other places — while, in the house 
of God, the rich generally have more fashionable seats than 
the poor ; and in the resting-places of the dead, the same 
distinction is often obvious — in the school-room, the child of the 
poor or the fallen is entitled to as high a seat, and to as great 
privileges, as the child of the wealthiest or the most honored 
man in the commmiity. Every lover of his race — every friend 
of equal rights — every one who wishes to elevate the unfortu- 
nate, must rejoice in the success of these little seminaries, 
which admit of no distinctions which merit does not originate. 

The permanence of our civil institutions depends more upon 
our free school system, than upon any thing else, save the great 
and elevating principles of our holy religion. It is worthy of 
special remark, that that portion of the country which is labor- 
ing to destroy our blessed Republic, and build up an arbitrary 
and aristocratic government in its place, is the very section 
where free schools have never been established — a fact which 
speaks volumes for our free school system. 

As far back as we have official returns, viz. in 1834, Marl- 
borough appropriated but $900 for the support of her schools, 
which was rather a small sum for a town of her population and 
wealth. This sum was raised to $1,000 in 1836, and in 18-tl 
to $1,100. The abstract of the schools published by the Com- 
monwealth, showed that Marlborough was in the rear of other 
towns of her class, and the school committee, in 1844, urged 
it upon the town to increase their appropriations ; yet their 
wise suggestion was lost upon the people. But the grad- 
uated tables in the Annual Report of the Board of Education, 
presented her to considerable disadvantage, and the fluctuation 
in the number of scholars, from year to year, was such as to 
show that the town committee could have paid but little atten- 
tion to the subject committed to them. 

About 1850, a new interest seems to have been excited. 
The appropriation, which crept along up to $1,300, was in 1851, 
increased to $1,500, and in 1853, to $2,250. In 1855, two new 
and more commodious school-houses were erected, and about 
the same time the larger schools were graded, and females were 
employed to instruct the smaller children ; so that, practically, 
the number of schools was carried from ten to sixteen, and the 
same amount of money was made more productive, by furnish- 



221 



ing better facilities to the children of the place. In 1857, a 
new feeling was infused into the community, and the sum of 
$3,465, was devoted to the schools. This sum was increased 
to $3,910 in 1860. Thus, within a few years, has the town of 
Marlborough brought her schools up to a high standard. 

As a view of the past may serve to stimulate us in the future, 
I will present a view of the appropriations in Marlborough for 
the support of public schools, together with the number of 
scholars. 





No. of Scholars 


Appropriation 




^0. of Scholari 


Appropriation 


Yoar. 


bi'tween 


f.)r Schooln 


Year. 


between 


for 


, Four and Sixteen. 


for the y.ar. 


F 


ve and Fifteen. 


Schools. 


1834 . 


. 634 


$900 


1851 . . 


. 580 


$ 1 ,500 


1H36 . 


. G30 


1,000 


1853 . . 


. 653 


2,250 


1838 . 


. 640 


1,100 


1855 . . 


. 712 


2,150 


1840 . 


. 651 


1,000 


1856 . 


. 709 


2,220 


1842 . 


. 600 


1,125 


1857 . . 


. 712 


2,280 


1844 . 


. 656 


1,100 


1858 . . 


. 843 


3,465 


1846 . 


. 596 


1,100 


1859 . . 


. 829 


3,746 


1848 . 


. 560 


1,300 


1860 . . 


. 829 


3,882 


1850 . 


. 643 


1,300 


1861 . . 


. 875 


3,910 



This table, while it shows some want of accuracy, proves, at 
the same time, the increased interest manifested in the cause of 
education. The figures set down are from the returns of each 
preceding year ; and hence what stands against 1861 is, in fact, 
the state of things for 1860 ; and so of other years. 

For a time Marlborough hardly came up to the standard of 
other towns of her class, in her appropriations for the schools. 
But it is due to her to say, that as the money was divided 
among the districts, many of the citizens in the districts length- 
ened out the schools, by furnishing fuel and board, at a reduced 
rate, and sometimes by private contributions. 

But there was another cause which contributed to keep down 
the appropriations, and to lessen the interest felt in the common 
schools. Realizing that the district schools did not meet the 
wants of the people, certain enterprising citizens of Marlborough, 
hi 1826. obtained a charter and established an academy. In the 
year following, a building was erected for the accommodation 
of the school. Subsequently, Messrs. Silas Gates and Abraham 
Gates, father and son, gave successively, each, one thousand 

29 



222 

dollars by will, the interest of which was to be appropriated 
towards the salary of a preceptor. In consequence of these 
benefactions, the name of the academy was changed to that of 
the "Gates Academy." This school was under the care of 
Messrs, Wheeler, Lincoln, Hoppin, and Langley. At first it 
was in a flourishing condition ; but it fell into a decline, and 
had nearly expired, when, in 1833, Mr. O. W. Albee took the 
charge of the school, and brought it up to a respectable con- 
dition. 

But this institution, like most others of the kind, failed of 
the great object for which public schools should be supported. 
It met the wants of the few, at the expense of the many. 
Academies have almost invariably proved injurious to the cause 
of the common school system in the towns where they are 
situated. The wealthy and influential classes which generally 
patronize the academy, have, from that very fact, their interest 
and sympathy withdrawn from the town schools ; so that these 
little seminaries, on which alone the masses depend for the 
education of their children, are sufl"ered to languish. The eff"ect 
was seen in Marlborough, as in other places similarly situated. 
The appropriations for the town schools, which were kept down 
to $900, $1,000, and $1,100, would, in all probability, have been 
much greater, but for the presence of this institution. 

Hon. Mr. Albee, in his address at the dedication of the High 
school-house, in December, 1860, justly observes : 

" The academies seemed, at one time, to endanger the existence of the 
free school system ; because, as the large tax-payers usually sent their chil- 
dren to these select schools, it was difficult to persuade them that it was 
their duty to vote for the highest sum proposed for free schools, in addition 
to the patronage they gave to privat-e schools. In consequence of this state 
of things, school-houses were gradually neglected, and in fact the whole 
system was becoming rickety. 

" But as when any evil becomes threatening, reformers usually start up, 
and arouse the community to a sense of the danger impending ; so in this 
case, men were not wanting who were ready to tlirow themselves into the 
breach, and sound the trumpet of alarm. Horace Mann, of Dedham, and 
James G. Carter, of Lancaster, and their coadjutors, saw the danger and 
sounded the alarm. After years of agitation and discussion, in the Legisla- 
ture and out of it, the views of the reformers prevailed. School-houses were 
rebuilt on improved plans, the wages of teachers were raised, and the laws 
were so changed as to revive the old system of High schools, wherein 
students could be fitted for the University. Hence, in accordance with the 



223 

ideas of the early fathers, and in conformity with the spirit of the age, and 
the views awakened throughout the State by the free school reformers, the 
Gates Academy quietly and calmly breathed its last, and the Free High 
School rose, pha3nix-like, from its ashes." 

Much praise is due to the gentlemen who endowed this acad- 
emy. They showed their devotion to the cause of education, 
by encouraging what was then believed to be the best way of 
doing it ; and the young, for years to come, will have reason 'to 
bless their memory. And when the fullness of time had come, 
and it became apparent that these bequests could better sub- 
serve the cause which the donors had at heart, by turning them 
into the channel of free school education, the residuary heirs, 
Mr. and Mrs. Stephen R. Phelps, generously consented that they 
might be transferred to the town, and the interest be appropria- 
ted to the support of a High school, whose benefits should enure 
to all the youth of the town. 

The liberal course pursued by Deacon Phelps and his lady, 
shows their high estimate of the importance of education, and 
an enlarged view of the great object at which the donors 
aimed. A spirit less liberal, a sentiment less enlightened might, 
on grounds strictly technical, have confined to the few, benefits 
really designed for the many, and so have defeated the intent 
of the givers by a false watchfulness of the gift. The course 
pursued by the heirs in this case, is cheerfully commended to 
all others similarly situated, hoping that they may realize that 
frequently in bequests, as well as in other things, " the letter 
killeth, but the spirit givetli life."' 

The same public sentiment which turned this fund into a 
more useful channel, increased the appropriations in Marlbo- 
rough, and has given a new impulse to the cause of popular 
education. The appropriation for schools which, in 1856, was 
but $2,220, in 1860 increased to $3,910. A High school has 
also been established, not only in the centre, but also at Felton- 
ville ; so that the children in all parts of the town can enjoy 
the blessings of a good education, free of charge. 

Marlborough now sustains a high and honorable position 
m reference to the great and important subject of free school 
education ; and we doubt not she will continue her noble efforts, 
so that her sons and her daughters may be well fitted for every 
useful avocation, and thus enabled to reflect honor upon their 



224 

native town. The history of every community shows that the 
seeds of knowledge, liberally sown, are sure to spring up in 
their midst, or in some distant soil, and the happy fruits will be 
enjoyed by thousands who will have great reason to bless the 
sower of the seed. 

The school-houses throughout the town have, within a few 
years, been greatly improved ; and in 1860, there was erected 
on the Old Common, at a cost of eight thousand six hundred 
dollars, a large and commodious building, for the accommoda- 
tion of the High School. This edifice (an engraving of which 
may be seen on the opposite page) is attractive by its location 
and architectural proportions, and reflects great credit upon the 
taste of the building committee, and the liberality of the town. 







WW ^' 



4^^=^ hjj^^T^I 








,. m 






\ .4_ 






CHAPTER XI. 



MISCELLANEOUS mSTORY. 

Situation and Extent — Topography — Soil and Productions — Orchards — 
Streams and Water Power — Mills — Health and Longevity — Name of 
the Town — Public Travel, Railroads — Cemeteries — Town Mark — Free- 
men, their Oath — Tythingmen and Stocks — Constables — Penal Code of 
our Fathers — Simplicity in Dress. 

Marlborough is a town in the westerly part of Middlesex 
County, bordering on the County of Worcester, and is situated 
between 42°, 18', 45" and 42°, 24', 30" north latitude, and be- 
tween 71°, 28', 35" and 71°, 37', 50" west longitude. It is 
bounded northerly by Stow, and a part of Bolton and Berlin ; 
southerly by Southborough, and a portion of Northborough ; 
westerly by Northborough and Berlin ; and easterly by Sud- 
bury, and a portion of Framingham. It is about 28 miles wes- 
terly from Boston, 24 south-westerly from Lowell, 13 south- 
westerly from Concord, and 16 miles easterly from Worcester. 
It is about 5.92 miles in length from east to west, and 4.61 
miles in breadth from north to south, making an area of about 
19,485 acres. The town has about 450 acres occupied by 
highways, and 460 covered by water. The total length of 
roads is nearly one hundred miles. 

Marlborough is an elevated township — the Old Common 
being about 450 feet above tide water ; and some of the swells 
of land, in the central part of the town, rising 150 or 200 feet 
above the Common, attain the elevation of about 650 feet above 
tide water. The rising ground northerly of Williams's Pond, 
the summit of which is known by the name of '- Mount Slygo," 
is probably the highest land in the County, miless it be some of 
the hills in Hopkinton. 

Being situated between the extensive valley of the Sudbury 
river on the one side, and that of the Assabet on the other, the 
central portion of the town is so elevated that the hills com- 



226 

mand a prospect of great extent and rare beauty. There are 
no ragged rocks or barren cliffs ; no stagnant pools or rude water- 
falls, denoting a broken, sterile surface, and presenting waste 
places ; but large, regular swells of land, extending from half a 
mile to a mile, crowned with fresh verdure to their summits, 
with their slopes waving with forests of fruit trees ; fertile, cul- 
tivated valleys spreading between the hills, adorned with grass 
and grain of every kind, and flowers of every hue ; and gentle 
rills, winding through the meadows, and marking their courses 
by a fresher green, and a belt of more luxuriant growth ; — these, 
blending in perfect harmony, present a prospect fraught with 
all that is rich in agriculture, and pleasing in rural scenery. 
And while this charming landscape is spread out before you, 
the presence of hundreds of handsome dwellings, embowered 
in groves of fruit and ornamental trees, and five village spires 
pointing to the heavens, all visible from the same point of view, 
unite to increase its beauty. But while the immediate view 
is thus attractive to the eye and grateful to the sense, the distant 
prospect adds a grandeur to the scene. Passing over the glit- 
tering spires in several of the neighboring towns, and the eleva- 
tions within their borders, the eye rests upon the Blue Hills in 
Milton, on the south-east, while the lofty Wachusett, in its sol- 
itary grandeur, the towering Monadnock, with its cloud-capped 
summit, and the various peaks of the mountain ranges in New 
Hampshire, rising majestically in the distance, bound and com- 
plete the view on the north-west and north. Taken together, 
the prospect from the Marlborough hills is one of richness and 
beauty rarely surpassed. 

Among the principal hills is Slygo, which is the highest point 
in town, and commands a prospect of the whole of the West, 
and a portion of the East village, and of that beautiful sheet of 
water, Williams's Pond, to say nothing of the distant view. 

Ockoocangansett Hill, which rises immediately north of the 
Old Common, and is rendered memorable by being, in days 
gone by, the " Indian Plantmg Field," is a large swell of some 
two hundred acres, from which most of the buildings, in both 
villages, may be seen. On the northerly slope of this hill there 
was formerly an Indian burial-place. 

In the southerly part of the town, there are Indian Head Hill, 
on the "Farm;!" Shoe String Hill; Jericho, near Southborough 



227 

line; Crane Hill, and Stirrip Hill. Prospect Hill, in the north- 
ern part of the town, near Mr. Stephen Rice's, is a considerable 
elevation, covered with a fine growth of wood, and having this 
distinctive characteristic ; — while the northern acclivity rises 
gently, with an unbroken soil, like most of the hills in the town, 
the southern declivity is abrupt and precipitous, presenting a 
ragged, rocky front. 

Bear Hill, in the northerly part of the town, near Mr. Eber 
Howe's, is a naked mass of rocks, thrown somewhat promiscu- 
ously together ; and nearly the same may be said of the ragged 
bluffs known as Robin Hill, near the school-house which bears 
that name. 

Addition Hill is a considerable elevation, overlooking the 
valley, or Fort Meadow Brook ; and West Hill, with its crest of 
open wood, is an object of attraction. These are situated nearly 
a mile northerly of the west meeting-house. 

Assahet Hill, near Feltonville, is a beautiful elevation of some 
hundred acres, rising in a gradual ascent, on the southerly side 
of the river, to the height of eighty or ninety feet, and capable 
of cultivation to the summit. It affords a fine prospect, and 
to use a military phrase, completely "commands" the whole 
village, and a large range of the adjacent country. 

There are other elevations within the township, having 
local names ; but they are not of sufficient importance to be 
mentioned here. 

Marlborough, considering its geographical position, is well 
wooded. Until within thirty years, there was a large quantity 
of wood in the town, especially in the north-westerly part ; and 
as late as 1840, the assessors returned 2,373 acres of woodland. 
The growth is generally oak, though chestnut, pine, maple, and 
walnut, are found in considerable quantities in some parts of 
the township. Formerly, some portions of the place were 
distinguished by large pasture oaks and chestnuts. Standing 
in open ground, they took deep root and grew to a vast 
size. They have now generally disappeared. The oaks being 
mostly white oak, many of them have been cut for ship timber ; 
and the chestnuts, being old, have been converted into plank 
or fencing-stuff. Thus the pride of many a pasture has been 
destroyed, and its beauty departed. Though hardly coming 
within the designation of wood, it may not be amiss to mention 



228 

a bush, or shrub, which formerly abounded here, to the no 
small annoyance of many of the farmers. We allude to the 
barberry. Some years ago, many of the pastures were actually 
overrun by this shrub ; and though its fruit was esteemed by 
many as a condiment for the table, its obtrusive character in the 
field has led to its partial extermination. 

The presence of this pest could not escape the notice of that 
indefatigable tourist, President Dwight, who, under the head of 
Marlborough, when speaking of this bush in his Travels, says : 
" In some fields they occupy one-sixth, one-fifth, and even one- 
fourth of the surface. Neat farmers exterminate them, except 
by the side of their stone inclosures. Here it is impossible to 
eradicate them, unless by removing the walls ; for the roots 
pass under the walls and spring up so numerously, as to make a 
regular and well-compacted hedge. Tliis bush in New Eng- 
land is generally believed to blast both wheat and rye. Its 
blossoms, which are numerous, and continue for a considerable 
time, emit very copiously a pungent effluvium, believed to be 
so acrimonious as to injure, essentially, both these kinds of 
grain." 

The surface of Marlborough is generally uneven ; though 
rising in gradual swells, the soil is not in many cases broken, 
the hills being capable of cultivation to the summits. The 
soil is generally a deep loam, somewhat rocky, but capable of 
great productiveness. Being moist and well-watered, it is ad- 
mirably adapted to the growth of grass of every variety. Few 
towns can compare with Marlborough in the production of this 
great staple of agriculture. Consequently, the place has always 
been distinguished for its neat stock and dairies. 

But in nothing has the town been more remarkable than in 
its orchards. The apple-tree seems to be indigenous to her 
soil ; and in many places the pastures have heretofore greatly 
suffered by the encroaching propensities of this species of tree ; 
so that the farmers were obliged to cut them down, or to root 
them up. 

Though it has been said that the apple is a native of Asia, 
it was cultivated by the Indians in Marlborough, before the 
town was settled by the English. In laying out a farm for 
President Chauncy, of Harvard College, in 1656, in that sec- 
tion of the town which took the name of Chauncy, now con- 



229 

stitLiting Westborough, the committee describe the tract as 
bounded on one side by a line passing near an Indian wig- 
wam, where there was an orchard. Gookin, in describing the 
" Indian Planting Field," within the present township, says 
that the Indians had an apple-orchard there before the settle- 
ment of the Massachusetts Colony. In every period of her 
history, the fruits of her orchards have been conspicuous. As 
early as 1676, when the Indians attacked Marlborough, among 
other wanton mischief, they cut down, or otherwise injured, 
their apple-trees, then in bearing. And in 1752, Henry Barnes, 
Esq., set up a distillery in the central part of the town, for the 
manufacture of cider-brandy, which he exported in considerable 
quantities ; which shows that the quantity of cider at that day 
must have been great. In 1771, the assessors returned to the 
General Court, for the purpose of taxation, 3,297 barrels of 
cider, as the product of their orchards. Marlborough cider was 
long known as a staple article in Boston market. Forty years 
ago, every considerable farmer had a cider-mill on his premises, 
and made his own cider. In fact, such a mill was regarded as 
one of the necessary buildings upon the farm ; and most of the 
farmers would commence teaming cider to Boston the latter 
part of September, sending their teams from two to four times 
a week, till the last of November, according to the quantity 
they had to dispose of. This custom continued till the Tem- 
perance Reform threw this beverage into the shade, when 
many of the orchards were, by engrafting, converted into win- 
ter fruit. By the returns of 1855, it appears that there were 
over 25,000 apple-trees cultivated for fruit, producing a crop 
valued at $16,000 per year. 

During the war of 1812, when distilled spirits commanded 
a high price, there were two large distilleries in the town, 
and another on its immediate border, drawing its principal 
supply from Marlborough ; and such was the quantity of cider, 
that in addition to what was carried to other markets, during 
the whole cider-making season, hundreds of barrels accumu- 
lated in the yards of these distilleries, besides all that was 
received within their capacious cisterns, or consumed by their 
stills, which were kept running, day and night. Some idea of 
the quantity of cider made, may be formed from the fact that 

30 



230 

the distillers obtained this vast amount at a price less than 
two cents per gallon, and paid for it out of their stores. 

Though Marlborough is well watered, being an elevated 
township, the streams are generally small. The Assabet is the 
only one which can be dignified with the name of a river. 
This stream rises in Westborough, and runs about half a mile 
east of the centre of Northborough ; and after receiving a con- 
siderable tributary, which has its source in Boylston, passes into 
Marlborough, and thence into Berlin, where it receives another 
tributary, when it passes again into Marlborough, and running 
near the western and northern boundary of the town, flows into 
Stow, about a mile and a half easterly of Feltonville. The 
only water-power which this stream furnishes in Marlborough, 
is at Feltonville, where a mill has been maintained more than 
a century and a half. The Assabet, after leaving Marlborough, 
continues a north-easterly course, and unites with tJie Sudbury 
river, near the centre of Concord, and finally finds its way to 
the ocean through the Merrimack. Its principal tributary, 
which rises in Marlborough, is Fort Meadow Brook, on which 
has been constructed, by the city of Boston, a capacious reser- 
voir to compensate the owners of water-power on the Concord 
river, for the water diverted from Cochituate Lake to supply 
the city. 

There are other small streams in town, which find their way 
into the Assabet and Sudbury rivers ; furnishing several small 
mill privileges within the town. The only considerable ponds 
in town, are Williams's or Gates's Pond, in the west parish, and 
White Pond, which lies partly in Marlborough and partly in 
Stow — the line between the towns passing nearly through its 
centre. Gates's Pond contains about one hundred and sixty 
acres, and is generally admired for its beauty. It is surrounded 
by high, fertile land, sloping and cultivated to the water's edge. 
It has the great, or old post road, passing near its northern 
shore, along its whole length. It has nothing which deserves 
the name of a stream flowing into it, but is fed by springs from 
the circumjacent hills, which ooze into it from its shores, or rise 
within the pond itself. It has a small outlet, which flows west- 
erly and empties into the Assabet, furnishing one small mill site 
in its course. White Pond is a fine sheet of water, situated in 



231 

a level, sandy section of the town, and takes its name from the 
white, sandy bottom, which gives its hue to the water. 

Marlborough, as we have already seen, has but little water- 
power; its streams being generally small. It is difficult to 
say when or where the first mill was erected. It is proba- 
ble, however, that the first was a saw-mill, and was ei-ected 
in that part of the town now included in Northborough, by 
John Brigham. It was near the centre of the present town 
of Northborough, on a stream which constitutes one of the 
principal tributaries of the Assabet. This mill was erected 
before Philip's war. Peter Bent erected one on Stony Brook, 
in that part which is now included in Southborough. This 
must have been soon after the return of the inhabitants in 
1677. Joseph Howe erected a grist, and perhaps a saw-mill, 
on the Assabet, about 1700, on the site of the present mills in 
Feltonville. This is the most important water-power in the 
town. Other and smaller mills have been erected, in different 
parts of the town, at some distance from the centre ; but being 
on small streams, cannot do much business, except in the wet 
season of the year. 

Marlborough, till within a few years, has been noted for its 
agriculture, rather than for its manufactures. It is one of the 
best agricultural towns in the County, producing more neat 
stock than any other town. Under a high state of cultivation, 
few townships in the Commonwealth would be more pro- 
ductive. The farms are generally large, and being fenced 
with substantial stone walls, present a good specimen of rural 
independence and agricultnral thrift. 

The altitude and topography of Marlborough would naturally 
indicate a healthy town ; and the facts contained in the official 
tables, fully confirm this impression. The registration of bills 
of mortality, for the four years, from 1856 to 1859, inclusive, 
shows the average per centage of deaths on the population 
annually, to be as follows : 

In the State, 1.73; in the County, 1.57; in Marlborough, 
1.18; — showing the health of Marlborough, during that period, 
to be .39 per cent greater than that of the County, and .55 greater 
than that of the State. 

We have no means of knowing officially, the exact number of 



232 



deaths in Marlborough at the different periods of her history, as 
the town records are very incomplete. From several private 
sources, we gather the following particulars. By a valuable 
record kept by Mrs. Grace Stow, wife of Mr. John Stow, ex- 
tending from 1760 to 1794, inclusive, it appears that the deaths 
and births were as follows: 



Year. 


Deaths. 


Births. 


Year. 


Deaths. 


Births. 


Year. 


Deaths. 


Birth 


1760 . . 


24 


52 


1772 . . 


8 


59 


1784 . 


. 29 


49 


1761 . 


12 


36 


1773 . 


25 


50 


1785 


. 26 


58 


1762 . 


10 


43 


1774 . 


11 


54 


1786 


. 15 


57 


1763 . 


17 


38 


1775 . 


78 


50 


1787 


. 16 


59 


1764 . 


15 


47 


1776 . 


44 


41 


1788 


. 21 


55 


1765 . 


12 


46 


1777 . 


. 31 


46 


1789 


. 18 


56 


1766 . 


18 


56 


1778 . 


21 


45 


1790 


. 24 


43 


1767 . 


13 


43 


1779 . 


8 


49 


1791 


. 19 


59 


1768 . 


. 13 


41 


1780 . 


18 


45 


1792 


. 10 


43 


1769 . 


. 15 


37 


1781 . 


26 


42 


1793 


. 12 


45 


1770 . 


, 16 


46 


1782 . 


. 17 


39 


1794 


. . 20 


49 


1771 . 


. 45 


41 


1783 . 


. 21 


58 









The record kept by Mrs. Stow was continued by her 
daughter Mary, afterwards wife and now widow of Mr. Daniel 
Williams. 



Tear. 


Deaths. 


Births. 


Year. 


Deaths. 


Birtlis. 


Year. 


Deaths. 


Birtlis 


1795 . 


. 49 


55 


1806 . 


. 29 


37 


1816 . 


. 24 


25 


1796 . 


. 20 


55 


1807 . 


. 24 


47 


1817 


. 31 


43 


1797 . 


. 20 


51 


1808 


. 14 


36 


1818 


. 24 


26 


1798 . 


. 17 


53 


1809 


. 15 


38 


1819 


. 27 


31 


1799 . 


. 13 


41 


1810 


. 24 


37 


1820 


. 37 


34 


1800 . 


. 22 


48 


1811 


. 17 


40 


1821 


. 24 


21 


1801 . 


. 24 


44 


1812 . 


. 25 


30 


1822 


. 26 


23 


1802 . 


. 19 


45 


1813 


. 26 


27 


1823 


. 29 


33 


1803 . 


. 26 


43 


1814 


. 18 


34 


1824 


. 20 


30 


1804 . 


. 22 


41 


1815 


. . 27 


34 


1825 


. . 39 


28 


1805 . 


. 33 


47 















As these records are of a private character, and the keeper of 
them had no other means of obtaining the facts than the reports 
gathered from individuals, it is manifest that some en'ors must 
have occun'ed. The increase of population and the division of 
the town into two parishes, would naturally increase the diffi- 
culty of obtaining a knowledge of all the deaths and births, and 
especially the latter. This will be obvious by an inspection of 
the above table, where it will be seen that the number of births 
has fallen off, while the number of deaths has remained about 



233 



the same. The great excess of births over the deaths in both 
the preceding tables, is explained by the fact that there has been 
some increase of population, and by the further fact, that there 
has been a constant emigration from the town. 

Mr. Stephen Rice commenced a private record of the deaths 
in Marlborough in 1820, and continued it to 1850. Considering 
the means of information they possessed, there is a remarkable 
coincidence between the records kept by him and by Mrs. Wil- 
liams, showing the accuracy of both. The discrepancy in sev- 
eral cases is accounted for by the fact, that in some instances 
persons were brought into town for interment, who died out of 
town : and such cases are noted by one, and not by tiie other. 
We will give both records. 



Year. 


Mrs. W. 


Mr. R. 


Ye-ar. 


Mrs. W. 


Mr. n. 


Year. 


Jtr». W. 


Mr. n 


1820 . 


. 37 


35 


1830 . 


. 32 


32 


1840 


. 25 


24 


1821 . 


. 24 


24 


1831 . 


. 24 


19 


1841 


. 24 


24 


1822 . 


. 26 


27 


1832 . 


. 33 


30 


1842 


. 31 


26 


1823 . 


. 29 


29 


1833 . 


. 46 


50 


1843 


. 39 


39 


182t . 


. 20 


21 


1834 . 


. 26 


25 


1844 


. 26 


26 


1825 . 


. 39 


40 


1835 . 


. 38 


38 


1845 


. 26 


34 


1826 . 


. 35 


32 


1836 . 


. 45 


37 


1846 


. 26 


28 


1827 . 


. 29 


28 


1837 . 


. 37 


37 


1847 


. 30 


27 


1828 . 


. 26 


28 


1838 . 


. 42 


42 


1848 


. 32 


36 


1829 . 


. 39 


40 


1839 . 


. 20 


26 


1849 


. 35 


41 



These views of the mortality of Marlborough for ninety years, 
speak well for the health of tiie place. Few towns of the same 
population can produce a larger number of old people than Marl- 
borough. Though many of the obituary records neglect to state 
the age, yet, imperfect as they are in this respect, they present 
numerous cases of remarkable longevity. Mary Rice died 1804, 
aged 99; Widow Abigail Robinson, aged 97; Widow Elizabeth 
Cole, 1813, aged 101 ; Keziah Smith, 1823, aged 103 ; Widow 
Silence Parmenter, 1829, aged 94 ; Widow Prudence Howe, 
1831, aged 97; Phinehas Howe, 1832, aged 94; Widow 
Susanna Bruce, 1832, aged 99 ; Mrs. Bathsheba Ames, 1836, 
aged 95 ; Phinehas Moore, 1838, aged 98 ; Widow Anne Waters, 
1838, aged 94 ; Widow Bartlett, 1845, aged 95 ; Mrs. John 
Howe, 1845, aged 95 : Thomas Barnes, 1847, aged 98. 

From 1821 to 1849 inclusive, there Avere sixty-three persons 
who died in Marlborough, aged 85 years and upwards ; viz., six 
aged 85 ; ten aged 86 ; fourteen aged 87 ; two, 88 ; four, 89 ; 



234 

ten, 90 ; two, 91 ; two, 92 ; two, 93 ; three, 94 ; three, 95 ; one, 
97 ; two, 98 ; one, 99 ; and one 103. Many single years present 
striking specimens of longevity. In 1813, there were among 
the deaths, one of 70 ; one of 77 ; one of 80 ; one of 87 ; one 
of 89 ; and one of 101. In 1832 there were thirty deaths. Of 
these there were, one aged 70 : one, 76; one, 78; one, 94; and 
one, 99. In 1847 there were twenty-seven deaths — one of a 
person aged 79; one, 85 ; one, 87; one, 89; and one, 98. Such 
specimens could be multiplied, even from the imperfect records. 

There are also many remarkable cases, where husbands and 
wives have both lived to an advanced age, and in some cases 
died at nearly the same period. 

Edward Rice died 1712, aged 93 ; Agnes, his widow, died 1713, aged 83. 
Jacob Rice died H^G, aged 86 ; Mary, his widow, died 1752, aged 80. 
Peter Rice died 1753, aged 95 ; Rebecca, his wife, died 1749, aged 81. 
Joshua Rice died 1734, aged 73 ; Mary, his widow, died 1766, aged 95. 
Gershom Rice died 1790, aged 81 ; Lydia, his widow, died 1799, aged 87. 
Thomas Rice died 1840, aged 93 ; Abigail, his wife, died 1828, aged 73. 
Gershom Rice died 1837, aged 82 ; Susannah, his wife, died 1837, aged 79. 
William Gates died 1848, aged 86 ; Elizabeth, his wife, died 1842, aged 78. 
John Gleason died 1816, aged 91 ; Persis, his widow, died 1820, aged 92. 
Moses Woods died 1821, aged 81 ; Lydia, his widow, died 1826, aged 86. 
Samuel Stow died 1813, aged 90 ; Rebecca, his widow, died 1818, aged 91. 
John Stow died 1828, aged 88 ; Grace, his wife, died 1824, aged 78. 
John Hapgood died 1835, aged 82 ; Lucy, his widow, died 1838, aged 81. 
Jonathan Hapgood died 1849, aged 90 ; Jerusha, his wife, died 1842, aged 80. 
Thaddeus Warren died 1821, aged 75 ; Lucy, his widow, died next day, aged 74. 

Peter Howe died 1778, aged 84 ; Grace, his wife, died , aged 75. 

Josiah Howe died 1827, aged 78 ; Molly, his widow, died 1845, aged 93. 
Samuel Howe died 1820, aged 71 ; Hannah, his widow, died 1835, aged 92. 
Joseph Howe died 1775, aged 78 ; Ruth, his widow, died 1781, aged 87. 
Joseph Howe died 1800, aged 72 ; Grace, his widow, died 1816, aged 87. 
Phinehas Howe died 1832, aged 93 ; Lydia, his widow, died 1837, aged 84. 
Gershom Bigelow died 1812, aged 97 ; Mary, his wife, died 1802, aged 84. 
William Boyd died 1817, aged 82 : Lydia, his wife, died 1817, aged 72. 
Samuel Witt died 1847, aged 84 ; Lucy, his wife, died 1847, aged 88. 

This list could easily be doubled, but enough has been given 
to show the longevity of many of the inhabitants. Several 
examples might be given of those now living as husband and 
wife, who have attained a great age ; but delicacy to the living 
forbids the mention of their names. Enough have been cited to 
show that Marlborough may be classed among the most healthy 
of our towns. The censuses show that in 1830, there were 
living in Marlborough fifteen persons between the ages of 80 



235 

and 90, and seven between the ages of 90 and 100 ; in 1840 
there were twenty-one between the ages of 80 and 90, and two 
between 90 and 100 ; in 1855, there were twenty-two between 
the ages of 80 and 90, and three between 90 and 100 ; and in 
1860, there were twenty-three persons hving, between the ages 
of 80 and 90. 

Marlborough was incorporated, May 31, 1660, old style, not 
by any elaborate charter, setting forth its boundaries, duties and 
liabilities ; but by the laconic order, " That the name of the 
said plantation (Whipsufferage) shall be called Marlborow." It 
took its name, probably, from Marlborough in England, a town 
in Wilts County, seventy-five miles from London. The name 
was formerly written Marlberg, or Marlbridge, and was derived 
from the marl or chalk hills by which it Avas surrounded. It 
was formerly a town of considerable notoriety. King John, 
for a time, held his court there, and in the civil wars during 
that period, the place was alternately held by the King and 
the Barons. The Assizes were held there from the time of 
Henry III. to that of Charles I. ; and in the fifty-second year 
of Henry III., Parliament assembled there. The town was 
chartered by Elizabeth. It is delightfully situated on the 
banks of the Kennett, on the northern verge of the forest of 
Lavenake. 

At the first settlement of Marlborough, in 1657, it was made 
one of the outposts of the Colony, and the " Connecticut way," 
or road, ran through the town. From that period onward, one 
of the principal lines of communication, west and south, was 
through this place. On this road, which was generally denom- 
inated the "great road," the first line of mail coaches was run, 
by Capt. Levi Pease. It was through this town that (reneral 
Washington passed in 1789, dining at the old Williams Tavern, 
by the pond. It was here that he was met by Jonathan Jack- 
son, Esq., marshal of the district, and Joseph Hall, Esq., aid to 
General Brooks, and others, to make arrangements for his recep- 
tion in Boston. Marlborough continued to be a great thorough- 
fare, till the introduction of railroads, when the travel was 
diverted from the place. But though there" is, at the present 
time, no long line of travel passing through the town, few places, 
remote from the great avenues, enjoy better railroad facilities 



236 

than Marlborough. A branch from the Fitchburg raih'oad, 
leaving the main trunk at South Acton, runs direct to Felton- 
ville, and thence to a central part of the town, terminating at 
the old Common. And the Agricultural railroad, which deflects 
from the Boston and Worcester road at South Framingham, has 
a spur running to the main road in Marlborough village, and 
terminating within sixty rods of the station of tlie other or 
northern road. Thus has the town the full benefit of two 
railroads, the depots of which are within five minutes' walk of 
each other. 

Cemeteries are becoming objects of attention, in most of 
our towns ; and their condition is being regarded as a sort of 
test of civilization, in the best sense of that term. The gloom 
which has been spread over the resting-place of the departed, 
and the forbidding appearance of our church-yards, are giving 
place to a more rational feeling and a better taste. The in- 
creasing light of the Sun of Righteousness has, in a good 
degree, dispelled the darkness of the tomb, and chased away 
the unearthly spectres, which were supposed to visit nightly 
the sepulchres of the dead. Christians, of all denominations, 
are beginning to regard the burial-places of their friends, as 
peaceful shades to Avhich they can profitably resort to muse in 
sweet melancholy upon the uncertainty of human life, and to 
call up anew the dear remembrance of departed friends. Such 
views and feelings have created a disposition to beautify and 
adorn the grounds where the dead are reposing. 

Though Marlborough has no rural cemetery, in the popular 
sense of the phrase, the people have, within a few years, given 
increased attention to the burial-places of their friends. 

The oldest yard in the town is adjoining the old Common, 
located, agreeably to the early custom, so near the meeting- 
house as to merit the designation of the "church-yard." The 
inclosure is filled with graves, and has been in a measure dis- 
used as a place of burial for some time. Not only the crowded 
condition of the yard, but the moist, springy state of the soil, 
has contributed to the desire to seek other and more favorable 
places for the interment of the dead. This yard, while it 
possesses no outward attraction, should be cherished as the first 
burial-place in the town. Here rest the remains of many of 



237 

the first settlers of the township. This yard, hke most of oiir 
old cemeteries, shows the comparative indifference with which 
too many, at this day, regard the resting place of their ancestors. 
With the exception of a small portion, but little order has been 
observed in the arrangement of the graves ; and the briars and 
wild grass which are permitted to grow unmolested, prove 
that the present generation cannot with grace accuse those who 
have gone before them, with a want of taste. Some of the 
stones have so sunken into the earth as to present an unsightly 
appearance ; some of them have partially or wholly fallen down, 
and many are so covered with moss, as to render the inscription 
nearly or quite illegible.* A small expense would materially 
change its appearance for the better, and make this yard an 
ornament to the Common on which it borders. 

The next oldest burial-place is what was formerly known as 
the " Burying Hill," situated some eighty rods easterly of 
Spring Hill meeting-house. It contains about two acres, is 
situated on a rise of ground, and is nearly filled up. It has 
several handsome lots, with stones of a neat and tasteful char- 
acter ; though, as a whole, the yard is neglected, and briars are 
suffered to grow up amid the graves. Like most of the old 
yards, the grounds were not laid out with any system ; so that 
we have not only '' uncouth rhymes and shapeless sculpture,-' 
but great irregularity in the location of the graves. The ground 
being ledgy, is not well adapted to burial pm'poses. 

To the eastward oi this, and not far from the residence of 
Capt. Aaron Stevens, is another inclosure, dedicated to the 
same object. It is situated on a rise of ground, is laid out in 
good taste, and is capable of being made an attractive place. 
It has several handsome stones, with elegant devices, and the 
forest trees on its border give it a rural appearance. The lot 
contains about two acres ; but a portion of the surface being a 
ledge, it cannot all be used for interments. It is a great im- 
provement upon the older yards. 

In the West Parish, some eighty rods south-easterly of the 
pond, is a cemetery which has been used forty or fifty years. 

* A solution of sal soda applied to the stones -will remove the moss, and 
restore the slate to its original bright appearance. It is also a fact worthy of 
beingknown, that the best quality of slate is more enduruig, and can be more 
easily kept in its original state than any marbje. 
31 



238 

The location upon the side hill is pleasant, but the absence of 
trees and shrubbery gives it a bleak appearance, and deprives it 
of that rural character so desirable in a cemetery. A little 
labor bestowed upon the grounds, and the planting of trees, 
would add greatly to its beauty. 

There is a cemetery containing nearly two acres, about three- 
fourths of a mile from the centre of Feltonville, on the Boston 
road. The character of the soil, and the undulating surface, 
render it well adapted for the purpose to which it has been 
dedicated. But, unfortunately, no system has been adopted in 
the location of the lots, and the walks between the lots are 
altogether too narrow, either for comfort or taste. Let those 
who are interested in this cemetery enlarge the inclosure, and 
cause one or more avenues, of sufficient width for carriages, to 
be laid out, and with a trifling expense they can make it a place 
of beauty and attraction. Nature has done her part, and art 
can easily make it all that is desirable. If the subject is at- 
tended to now, before the lot is encumbered by graves, a new 
beauty would be added to the portion already occupied, and the 
residue of the grounds would thereby be rendered more acces- 
sible. A tasteful laying out of the grounds, the removal of 
some of the forest trees, and the planting of others, would 
greatly improve its appearance, and render this cemetery more 
delightful than any one in the town. It has, already, a number 
of well-prepared lots and attractive monuments. 

There is also a cemetery near the hfiuse of Mr. Abel Brig- 
ham, commenced about twenty years ago, containing nearly 
two acres. It is situated in a retired spot, has several hand- 
some marble monuments, and is well laid out. This cemetery 
is kept in a neat condition, and when the trees are grown, will 
make a pleasant retreat, where, amid the beauties of nature, 
the living can hold communion with the departed, undisturbed 
by the hum of business, or the presence of the passing multi- 
tude. 

Another yard in the south-easterly part of the town, near 
the house of Stephen Morse, Esq., contains at the present 
time about two acres. It was first used as a burial-place about 
1700. and contains several hundred graves. The people in that 
part of the town are beginning to ornament it with trees, so 
that it may become a place of pleasant resort. 



239 

There is also a small yard near the old Weeks place, com- 
menced about thirty years ago. 

There is a small yard near Robin Hill school-house, where a 
few families have been buried. 

If the people of Marlborough had united and selected a 
suitable place for the purpose, they might have had a rural 
cemetery which would be an honor and ornament to the town. 
There is something pleasing in the thought, that all who act 
together in life, should rest in one common inclosure, when the 
labors of life are over. 

As this chapter is designed to be somewhat miscellaneous, it 
will not be out of place to mention a custom which prevailed 
in early times in the Colony, In the first settlement of the 
towns, when cattle ran at large, it was found convenient to brand 
them, so that they could be identified. Individuals adopted 
such marks as they pleased ; but it was thought wise that the 
towns should have some mark, so that when cattle wandered to 
a distance, it might be known to what town they belonged. In 
1662, the inhabitants of Marlborough applied to the General 
Court ; and in answer to their petition, the Court authorized 
them to adopt as a " brand marke " the following character : 



m 



As we have frequent occasion, especially in the Genealogy, 
to speak of " freemen," and of individuals being " admitted 
freemen," it seems proper that a few words should be said upon 
that subject. A "freeman" was one who was allowed the 
right of suff'rage, and was eligible to office. Our pious ances- 
tors guarded the ballot-box with peculiar care. As early as 
1631, they ordered that '- no man shall be admitted to the free- 
dom of the Commonwealth, but such as are members of some 
of the churches within the limits of this jurisdiction." This 
law operating hardly against some recent emigrants, it was so 
modified in 1662, that all Englishmen " shall present a certifi- 
cate, under the hand of the minister or ministers of the place 
where they dwell, that they are orthodox in religion, and not 
vicious in their lives ; and also a certificate from the Selectmen, 
that they are freeholders, ratable to the county, in a single 



240 

county rate to the full value of ten shillings," and they may 
then present themselves to the General Court for admittance as 
freemen ; and if accepted by the Court, may enjoy the priv- 
ileges of freemen in the Commonwealth. 

But before, or rather as a part of the induction into the high 
and responsible post of freeman, the following solemn oath was 
to be taken : 

" I, A. B., being by God's providence, an inhabitant and freeman within 
the jurisdiction of this Commonwealth, do freely acknowledge myself to be 
subject to the government thereof, and therefore do swear, by the great and 
dreadful name of the everlasting God, that I will be true and faithful to the 
same, and will accordingly yield assistance and support thereunto with my 
person and estate, as in equity I am bound, and also truly endeavor to main- 
tain and preserve all the liberties and privileges thereof, submitting myself 
to the wholesome laws and orders, made and established by the same ; and 
further, that I will not plot nor practice any evil against it, nor consent to 
any that shall so do, but will timely discover and reveal the same to lawful 
authority now here established, for the speedy preventing thereof; moreover, 
I do solemnly bind myself in the sight of God, that when I shall be called to 
give my voice touching any such matters of this State wherein freemen are 
to deal, I will give my vote and suffrage, as I shall judge in my conscience, 
may best conduce and tend to the public weal of the body, without respect 
of persons, or favor of any man. So help me God, in the Lord Jesus Christ." 

After being thus qualified by the vote of the Court, and by 
taking the above oath, the freeman was allowed to vote in the 
elections in the following manner, and under the following 
penalty : " It is ordered by this Com-t, and by the authority 
thereof, that for the yearly choosing of assistants, the freemen 
shall use Indian corn and beans — the Indian corn to manifest 
election, the beans the contrary ; and if any freeman shall put 
in more than one Indian corn or bean, for the choice or refusal 
of any public officer, he shall forfeit, for every such offense, ten 
pounds ; and that any man that is not a freeman, or hath not 
liberty of voting, putting in any vote, shall forfeit the like sum 
of ten pounds." 

The freemen at first were all required to appear before the 
General Court, to give their votes for assistants ; but it was 
found inconvenient, and even dangerous, for all of them to 
assemble in one place, leaving their homes unprotected ; and 
hence it was ordered, " That it shall be free and lawful for all 
freemen to send their votes for elections by proxy, in the next 



241 

General Court in May, and so for hereafter, which shall be done 
in this manner : The deputy which shall be chosen, shall cause 
the freemen of the town to be assembled, and then take such 
freemen's votes, as please to send them by proxy, for any magis- 
trates, and seal them up severally, subscribing the magistrate's 
name on the back side, and to bring them to the Court, sealed, 
with an open roll of the names of the freemen that so send them." 

But though corn and beans were sufficient to elect an Assist- 
ant, for Governor, Deputy Governor, Major General, Treasurer, 
Secretary, and Commissioners of the United Colonics, it was 
required that the freemen should make use of written ballots. 

There are some miscellaneous matters connected with the 
histories of towns, which are worthy of being recorded, as they 
cast light upon the spirit of the age, and the manners and 
customs of the people. Among the officers deemed important 
by our fathers, were the '•Tythingmeii ;''' and this class was, 
in the early days of our country, regarded as of the highest 
importance. The tythingmen were generally among the most 
sedate and respectable men in the towns, and were a kind of 
religious police, whose special duty it was to see that the Sab- 
bath was duly observed, and that the boys, and others, behave 
orderly at religious meetings. They were frequently so posted 
in the meeting-houses, as to have the whole congregation in 
view, in order to detect any indecorum. Especially was it 
required of them to see that no impropriety was committed at 
noon-time, by the young people who remained about the place 
of worship. In Marlborough, as in other towns, some of their 
best and most respectable men held, from time to time, the 
dignified place of tythingman. 

Nearly connected with the duties of the tythingmen, were 
the " iS'iocArs," which were regarded as an important town insti- 
tution, for a terror to evil-doers. They were constructed of 
plank attached together by a hinge, or something of that sort, 
at one end, and so arranged that they could be opened and 
closed at pleasure. The edges of the plank where they came 
together, were so cut or rounded out, as to admit the wrists, 
ankles, and sometimes necks of the culprits, when the stocks 
were opened ; but when they were closed, the individuals were 
held fast by the arm, leg, or neck, or by all together, during 
the pleasure of the authorities ; for when they were closed 



242 

and locked, it was impossible for the individual to extricate 
himself. These stocks were sometimes located under the stairs 
leading to the gallery of the meeting-house, and being generally- 
attached to the building, constituted a sort of prison, where the 
disorderly could be confined, and more gross offenders punished. 
Marlborough, of course, had this emblem of justice and civiliza- 
tion. When the town authorities, headed by the tythingman, 
confined disorderly boys, and others who disturbed the peace 
of society, and especially the quiet of the Sabbath, they were 
but carrying out the sentiments of the people, and obeying the 
laws of the land. The records of the General Court show 
numerous instances in which towns were fined for not provid- 
ing stocks — so important were they considered in those days. 

A few specimens of the records of the General Court, will 
show how the congregated wisdom of the Colony regarded 
crimes, and what species of offenses were justly punishable by 
this kind of confinement. 

" George Palmer, having committed folly with Margary Ruggs through 
her allurment, because hee confessed voluntarily, hee was onely set in the 
stocks, and so dismissed. Margary Ruggs, for entising and alluring George 
Palmer, was censured to be severely whipped." 

" James Brown is censured for drunkenness, to bee set two hours in the 
bilboes (stocks), upon the market day at Boston, publicly." 

"John Smyth, of Meadford, for swearing, being penitent, was set in the 
bilboes." 

" Robert Shorthouse was set in the bilboes, for sliteing the magistrates in 
his speeches." 

"Francis Weston's wife (crime not mentioned) was censured to be set 2 
hours in the bilboes here, and 2 hours at Salem, upon a Lecture day." 

"John Wedgewood, for being in the company of drunkards, was set in the 
stocks at Ipswich." 

Such were some of the sentences which were passed by the 
<' Great and General Court," when they acted in a judicial 
capacity. But in a few years, they appointed local magistrates 
in many of the towns, " to try small causes," or " end small 
businesses ; " and hence the stocks or bilboes were in a great 
measure handed over to local authorities. But the action of the 
General Court shows the importance with which this kind of 
punishment was viewed ; and hence the towns, in putting the 
stocks in requisition, were but carrying out public sentiment. 
In fact, the towns at that day might as well be without a pound, 



243 

for the confinement of unruly cattle, as to be without stocks to 
confine the more turbulent bipeds. 

Another officer of no small importance in early days, was the 
Constable. This office was rendered critical from the fact that 
the constable was made collector of all taxes ; and was gen- 
erally held to a very strict account, for the whole sum com- 
mitted to him for collection. This, occasionally, rendered the 
office very undesirable. And in some towns a considerable 
accession was, at particular times, made to the funds of the 
treasury by fines which were paid by men elected to that 
office, who refused to accept of the honor conferred upon them 
by their fellow-citizens. In some cases, three or four would be 
elected to this office, before one could be found who would 
consent to wear honors so unwelcome, though bestowed by the 
unsought suifrages of the people. 

The manners and customs of our fathers often discover tli^m- 
selves in the records of their times. The record of an immate- 
rial fact will often disclose the customs, and even the habits of 
thought of a whole people. It has often been said, that the 
laws of a people show at once their vices and their virtues. So 
the records of courts show the crimes into which some fall, and 
the stern justice which visits their crimes with condign punish- 
ment. Our fathers were generally severe in their punishments, 
and we naturally smile at the mention of their strictness. But 
we should always judge men by the spirit of the age in which 
they lived, and by the customs which then prevailed. Stern- 
ness to mark offenses and to punish them, was one of their 
distinguishing characteristics ; and if they carried this feeling 
too far, there is some danger of our falling into the opposite 
extreme. If they had too much reverence, we may have too 
little ; if they were too great sticklers for religious observances, 
we may be too lax on this great subject. And though we 
may justly claim an amelioration in our laws, and an improve- 
ment in our jurisprudence, we claim too much, when we sup- 
pose that every change is an improvement, and that we are 
praiseworthy, simply because we differ from them. It is well, 
however, that we make ourselves acquainted with their laws 
and usages, that we may see wherein the difference consists. 

I will give a few specimens of their punishments, as tending 
to show the change that has taken place in two centuries ; and 



2U 

while we condemn them, we must remember that such was the 
feeling of that age ; and that if we had lived in that time, we 
should in all probability have imbibed the same principles and 
cherished the same feelings. 

" It is ordered that John Baker be whipped for shooting att fowle on the 
Sabbath day." 

" Thomas Pettet, for suspition of slander, idlenesse and stubbornness, is 
censured to be severely whipped, and to be kept in hould." 

"Benjamin Hubbard was solemnly admonished of his failing, for being in 
company with James Browne and the rest, and often drinking of the strong 
water bottle with them, and not reproving them." 

" Robert Bartlet, being presented for cursing and swearing, was censured 
to have his tongue put in a clift stick." 

" Katharine, the wife of Samuel Fitch, being accused of speaking against 
the magistrates, against the churches, and against the elders, was censured 
to bee whipped, and committed till the next General Court." 

" Mr. Thomas Makepeace, because of his novile disposition, was informed 
wee were weary of him unless hee reforme." 

" William Bartlet, for distemperdness in drinking, and lying, was fined 
20s. by the Governor, Treasurer, and Secretary." 

" Nich. Ellen was fined 40.f. for idleness and disorderly living, and had 
liberty till the next Court to settle himself." 

" Ralf Allen was fined 10s. for releasing a servant before the expiration 
of his time." 

"John Goss, for common railing, was disfranchised, fined 20s. and com- 
mitted to prison." 

"Robert Saltonstall is fined 5s. for presenting his petition in so small and 
bad apiece of paper." 

" Robert Coles is ffined x/., and enjoined to stand with a white sheet of 
paper on his back, wherein 'A Drunkard 'shalbe written in Great Letters, 
and to stand therewith soe longe as the Court thinks meete, for abusing 
himself shamefully with drink." 

" Capt. Lovell was admonished to take heede of light carriage." 

We will conclude this list with a case more severe and san- 
guinary. 

" It is ordered, that Phillip Rutliffe shalbe whipped, have his ears cut off, 
ffined 40£ and banished out of y'= lymitts of this jurisdiction, for uttering 
malicious and scandalous speeches against the Government and church of 
Salem, as appears by a particular thereof proved upon oath." 

These examples show with what care our ancestors watched 
the morals of the community ; and if they were severe in their 
penalties, we must ascribe it to the spirit of the age in whicii 
they lived. 



245 

As we have presented some of the sterner features of our 
forefathers' character, in their criminal code, we will give a 
specimen of their modest simplicity in relation to dress. 

"The Court taking into consideration the great superfluous and unneces- 
sary expenses occasioned by some new and immodest fashions, as also the 
ordinary wearing of silver, gold, and silk laces, girdles, hat bands, &.C., hath 
therefore ordered that no person, eitlicr man or woman, shall hereafter make 
or buy any apparel, either woolen, silk or linen, with any lace on it, silver, 
gold, or thread, under the penalty of forfeiture of such cloathes. Also that 
no person, either man or woman, shall make or buy any slashed cloathes, 
other than one slash in each sleeve, and another in the back ; also all cut 
works, embroidered or needle work caps, bands, and rayles, are forbidden 
hereafter to be made and worne, under the aforesaid penalty ; also all gold 
or silver girdles, hat-bands, belts, ruffs, beaver hats are prohibited to be 
bought, and worne, under the same penalty." 

If, in the penal code, we have improved upon the severity of 
our fathers, I fear that in republican simplicity, and in house- 
hold economy, they have the advantage of us ; and though I 
would not return fully to their simplicity in dress, I am satisfied 
that we might profit by their example, and lop otf some of our 
" superfluous and unnecessary expenses, occasioned by some 
new and immodest fashions." By so doing, we might diminish 
our expenditure in dress, and lessen the circumference of some 
fashionable people ; and so keep within the bounds of reason. 



32 



CHAPTER XII. 

STATISTICAL HISTORY. 

The Population of Marlborough in each Decade, from its. Incorporation to the 
Present Time — Valuations at Different Periods — Manufactures and Other 
Productions — Growth of the Town — The Centre Villages — Feltonville — 
Shoe Manufactories — Savings 13ank — Insurance Company — Maynard's 
Bequest — List of Volunteers for the Army. 

Nothing would be more interesting, than a connected view 
of the population and wealth of the town from its first settle- 
ment to the present day. To witness the increase of its inhab- 
itants, the development of its resources, the progress of its civil- 
ization ; its advance in agriculture, literature and religion ; and 
to realize fully this planting, budding, and bursting into life of 
an organized community, which is destined to advance in 
whatever will improve, refine, and elevate society ; — we must 
go back in imagination, and place ourselves in a wilderness, 
among a peojJe, inured to toil and hardship, ready to fell the 
gnarled oak, to turn the rugged soil, and to expel the beasts 
of prey, that they might fit up habitations for the abode of 
domestic peace and enjoyment. We must contemplate a race 
whose rough and manly virtues had not been enervated by 
luxury, whose perseverance was untiring, and whose faith was 
bordering upon assurance ; a race prepared to do, to dare, 
and if need be, to die for their privileges as citizens, or their 
rights as Christians. Such was the character of our sires, and 
such the situation in which they were placed. If this view of 
the subject is thought too imaginative, the reader will probably 
find the rest of this chapter sufficiently real and tangible, to 
balance the account. 

At the incorporation of the township in 1660, it is probable 
that some of the men then in the town, had not moved their 
families to the place. Coming from Sudbury, only about 
eight miles distant, they would undoubtedly leave, in most 



247 

cases, their families, till they had made some preparation to 
receive them. Nor is it probable that many of them would 
erect even a cabin, until they knew the lot which they could 
occupy as their own. Some, however, had so far anticipated 
what is now known as "squatter sovereignty," as to erect rude 
habitations in advance of the division of the lands. On the 
division of their lots, immediately after their act of incorpora- 
tion, it appears that there were thirty-eight proprietors who 
shared in this distribution. It is not probable that more than 
one-half of that number were actual residents in the town at the 
time ; and not more than eight or ten of that number had their 
families in town within the year 1660. If we estimate these 
households at the usual number of five to a family, and include 
those who were then without their families, the population in 
1660, may be set down at 55 souls. 

But in a few years, there was a considerable increase of the 
population. Before 1665, Nathaniel Johnson, Samuel Ward, 
Abraham Williams, John Woods, Jr., John Brigham, Thomas 
Brigham, Thomas Barnes, ThomVis Wheeler, Thomas Barrett, 
and several others, appear to have joined the settlement. A 
Committee of the Legislature, in 1665, state the number of 
proprietors at forty-four. And thougli the whole number were 
not in town at that time, and all who were there had not prob- 
ably brought their families to the place ; yet it should be re- 
membered, that as there was no apprehension from the Indians 
at that period, and as our mothers shared in the enterprise and 
courage of our fathers, they would be likely to follow their 
husbands at an early day, and partake with them of the hard- 
ships and privations of the wilderness. Gookin, in 1671, says 
that the number of families in Marlborough, at that time, fell 
a little short of fifty. If we should estimate their number in 
1670 at forty, and should add ten more for those who had come 
to the place without families, we should have a population at 
that time of 210 ; which cannot vary much from the true 
number. 

There were some accessions to the population during the first 
half of the decade commencing with 1670 ; but the breaking 
out of Philip's war, in 1675, dispersed the inhabitants, some of 
whom did not return till nearly 1680. A few, perhaps, did not 
return till after that period ; though there must have been some 



248 

increase in a portion of the families, so that the population in 
1680 may be set down at the same, substantially, that it was 
ten years before, viz. 212. 

From 1680 to 16^0, there was a fair increase in the popu- 
lation. The return of peace would naturally invite settlers, 
and the opening of the Indian Plantation, in 1684, could not 
fail to invite people to the place ; and though the settlers on the 
plantation did not strictly belong to Marlborough till 1719, as 
they attended church there, and were in fact one community 
with the Marlborough people, they may, for the purpose we 
have in view, be included in her population. And in fact, as 
we find early in the decade beginning with 1690, the names of 
Martin, and Taylor, and Gove, and Stow, and Keyes, and 
Joslin, and Eager, and Parker, and Sawyer, and some others, 
we can safely add them to the list of families. Besides, the old 
families had sensibly multiplied ; and whoever is acquainted 
with the number of children composing most of the families at 
that day, will be satisfied that the popular average of five per- 
sons to a household, will fall short of the actual number. We 
must, however, bear in mind thiit the spirit of emigration not 
only brought people into the town, but induced some that were 
there, to seek new homes in more western localities. From 
these considerations, and a view of the whole subject, we can- 
not estimate the population in 1690, at less than 375. 

After 1690, there was quite an accession to the popula- 
tion. The Morses, the Bigelows, the Weekses, the Hapgoods, 
and other immigrants, considerably swelled the number of fam- 
ilies ; and the natural increase among the old settlers ushered 
in the new century with a large addition to the population. 
In a controversy in relation to settling a minister, in 1701, we 
find that about one hui^dred and ten of the citizens were enlisted 
in it ; and if we suppose that three-fourths of them were heads 
of families, and add half a dozen more who would take no part 
in the controversy, we should hav^e a population, in 1700, of 
about 530. 

As nothing occurred to impede the growth of the place, 
the population during the first decade in the century must 
have increased somewhat rapidly. There were, of course, 
new families coming into town ; and many of the old ones, 
true to the command to " increase and multiply," furnishing 



249 

children by the dozen, would naturally swell the tide of pop- 
ulation. We have, however, in this case, a better criterion by 
which to estimate the population than we have had in any pre- 
ceding period. In 1711, when danger was apprehended from 
the Indians, the town created twenty-six places of refuge, 
located in different parts of the town, by erecting stockade, or 
log defenses, around the dwellings. A committee of some of 
the principal citizens was appointed to assign the different fam- 
ilies to the respective garrisons. By their report we learn that 
there were one hundred and thirty-three families ; and estimat- 
ing them at six to a family, we have a population of 798, in 
1710. 

The next decade witnessed a large increase of population, 
but this was both augmented and diminished by extraneous 
causes. Annexing the Indian Plantation to Marlborough, in 
1719, and setting off Chauncy to form the town of West- 
borough, in 1717, each had a sensible effect upon the popula- 
tion, though they probably nearly balanced each other. We 
have no means of ascertaining, exactly, how many inhabitants 
belonged to either of these tracts of country. There were 
about thirty families on the Indian Plantation in 1719. The 
portion taken from Marlborough contained more than twice as 
much territory as that included in the Indian Plantation, but 
perhaps about the same amomit of population. The town of 
Westborough must have had (juite a number of families, for 
the year after their separation they built a meeting-house, and 
soon after settled and maintained a minister. About the same 
time, an emigration to Shrewsbury commenced. Under these 
circumstances, we think the population, in 1720, may be set 
down at 795. 

The next decade was similarly affected ; the population was 
augmented by the removal into town of several families, and 
by a natural increase, which would have carried the population 
up to nearly a thousand ; but within this period, the Stony 
Brook neighborhood was set off to form the town of South- 
borough : and the emigration to Shrewsbury and other towns 
continuing, Marlborough was hardly able to hold her own in 
point of numbers. We estimate the population in 1730, at 775. 

It will be seen by this comparison, that Marlborough was 
doomed to heavy losses, both in territory and in people ; and 



250 

had it not been for an annexation of a tract of land north of 
the Indian Plantation on the line of Stow — of the " Farm," 
with several families npon it — and especially of the Indian 
Plantation, her limits would have heen very much circum- 
scribed, and her population greatly reduced. Besides, Marl- 
borough, during her whole early history, was a sort of cradle 
town, which, like Watertown, Concord, and Roxbury, was 
rearing emigrants who were moving to Worcester, and Brook- 
field, and Rutland, and other towns farther west. 

From 1730 to 1740, several new families came to the place, 
and the popnlation increased to about 900. 

In 1750, the popnlation must have been not far from 1,000. 
During the period from 1780 to 1750, there were many emi- 
grants who went out from Marlborough. In 1736, a new 
township, west of Connecticut river, was granted to seventy- 
two proprietors, a great part of whom belonged to this town. 
That township was incorporated in 1750, by the name of New 
Marlborough, from the fact that many of the original proprie- 
tors and first settlers were from this town. The first white 
inhabitant of the new township was Benjamin Wheeler, of 
Marlborough, who spent the hard winter of 1739-40 in the 
place, when there was no white inhabitant nearer than Shef- 
field, a distance of more than ten miles. The next summer, 
Noah Church, Jabez Ward, Elias Keyes, John Taylor, William 
Witt, and probably others from Marlborough, settled there. 
In 1750, Daniel Stewart, who was clerk of the proprietors, 
states that fifty-seven lots were taken, and the names of Fay, 
Howe, Rice, Brigham, Newton, and Goodnow, appear on the 
list — showing that Marlborough must have contributed largely 
to that settlement. These facts are stated here, to show that 
there was a very large drain from the town of Marlborough ; 
which accounts for the fact that her population increased so 
slowly. 

In 1760, the population was probably about 1,175. In 1765, 
we have a Province census, which shows a population at that 
time of 1,287. In 1770, we have an official number of the 
polls in the town, viz. 322 ; and as the town at that time was 
purely agricultural, and the polls were then taxed at the age of 
sixteen years, it is fair to estimate the population at that period 
at about 1,300. 



251 

The period which followed 1770, was of course materially 
affected by the war. There was but little emigratiou during 
this decade, and the natural increase would have swelled the 
])opulation materially, but for the war. Those who have not 
examined the subject carefully, are hardly aware to what an 
extent population is retarded by war. Some are killed in 
battle; more, generally, die of disease, either in the service, or 
immediately on their return home. Besides, those in the service 
are mostly the young, the producing classes, so far as popula- 
tion is concerned. Soldiers are in many cases single men, and 
after they return from service, are not usually in a condition 
to support families ; and hence, if they marry at all, are apt to 
marry late in life. All these circumstances tend directly to 
check the natural increase of population. We are, therefore, 
not to look for a great increase between 1770 and 1780. In 
1778, Marlborough had 352, and in 1781, 370 polls. Taking 
the average proportion, there would be 364 polls in 1780. This 
would give a population of about 1,465. 

From 1780 to 1790, there was a sort of breaking up of the 
elements of population throughout the State. With the return 
of peace, there was considerable change in the business affairs 
of the community, and the inhabitants of the older towns, in 
many cases, sought an abode in new townships. Marlborough 
experienced a heavy drain from this cause. Several families 
moved to Henniker and Marlborough, N. H., and other places. 
In 1784, when the district of Berlin was created, David Taylor, 
Silas Carley, John Spofford and John Brigham, with their fami- 
lies, were taken from Marlborough, to help form that district. 
This loss of population was compensated for by the fact that, 
soon after, the line between Marlborough and Framingham was 
altered, by which Marlborough received Jonathan Robinson, 
widower, Amos Darling, Jonas Darling, and their families, who 
had formerly resided on territory belonging to Framingham. 

In 1790, the first United States census was taken, and from 
that time to the present, we have an official statement of the 
population every ten years, given with more or less particularity, 
according to the character of the respective censuses. Unfor- 
tunately there has been no uniform system in classifying the 
population ; each census in this respect, being independent of 
every other. Hence the variety in the succeeding tables. 



9.^9 



To exhibit the population of Marlborough at a glance, we 
will present it in a tabular form. 

Population of Marlborough at the Commencemtnt of each Decehnial Period, 
from its Incorporation to the present time. 



Populatio 

551 


n. 


Year. 

^ 1730 


210 




1740 


212 




1750 


375 


)■ Not official. 


17G0 


530 




1770 


798 




1780 


795, 







1660 
1670 
1680 
1690 
1700 
1710 
1720 



The following; is from official sources : 



Population. 

775 
900 
1,000 
1,175 
1,300 
1,465 



Year. Population. 

1790 1,554 



Year. Population 

1800 1,635 



1810. — Population, 1,674, with the following details : 



Under 10. 

Males 229 

Females, 238 

Colored, ....... 



10 to 16. 


If. to 2G. 


132 


144 


129 


157 



!6 to 4.^. 45 and upwards. Total. 

138 174 817 
152 179 855 
2 



1820. — Population, 1,952, with the following details 



1,674 





Under 10. 


10 to 16. 


16 to 18. 


16 to 26. 


26 to 45. 


45 anrl upwartls. 


Total. 


Males, . . 


. 283 


144 


47 


170 


181 


172 


950 


Females, . 


. 265 


138 


. . 


189 


189 


210 


991 
















11 



















1,952 



1830. — Population, 2,074, with tlie following details: 



80 90 
to to 
90. 100. 



Males, . 

Females, 

Colored, 



165 150 133 106 160 140 72 44 39 26 8 2 1,045 
155 134 117 99 162 118 95 60 37 35 7 5 1,024 



2,074 



1840. — ^Population, 2,092 with the following details : 



80 90 
to to 
90. 1(X>. 



Males, 
Females, 



132 106 142 118 171 132 98 53 41 23 9 1 1,026 
150 132 120 114 163 127 91 83 40 33 12 1 1,066 

2,092 



253 

1850.— Population, 2,941. 

Males, 1,652 

Females, ; 1,379 

Colored, , . ^ 10 

2,941 
The above census does not give the details as to age. 

1855. — Population, 4,288, by the State census, with the following 
details : 

Males. Females. Native. Foreign. Colored. Total. 

2,255 2,033 3,262 1,021 5 4,288 

a 10 1,5 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 "JO 

Under 5. to to to to to to to to to to to Total. 

10. i:,. 20. 30. 40. SO. 60. 70. 80. 90. 100. 

592 "392 393 477 967 660 343 217 142 72 22 3 4,288 
1860. — Population, 5,910, Avith the following details: 

1 5 10 l.'i 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 

Under 1. to to to to to to to to to to to Total. 

5. 10 15. 20. 30. 40. 50. 60. 70. 8W. 90. 

Males, . 105 356 293 232 343 774 483 215 143 87 33 9 3,073 
Females, 110 354 314 227 273 652 398 206 142 94 50 14 2,834 
Colored, 3 

5,910 

It would be interesting, were we able to give the Valuation 
of the town in the different periods of its history. But we have 
no facts to enable us to furnish this information. The records 
afford no data, and it is only from a few fragmentary papers, 
gathered from different sources, that the following facts are 
gleaned ; but, disconnected as they are, they give some inform- 
ation concerning the pecuniary condition of the town. 

In 1771, the Assessors return to the General Court 287 polls 
taxed, and 36 not taxed ; 169 dwelling-houses ; 394 oxen ; 933 
cows; 218 horses; and 3,297 barrels of cider. They also 
mention a species of property not known or recognized by our 
laws at the present day, viz., slaves. They were held by the 
following persons : Henry Barnes, Esq., 2 ; Abraham Rice, 1 ; 
Edward Johnson, 1 ; and Hannah Brigham, 1. It is due, 
however, to the people of Marlborough to say, that, from the 
first, the number of slaves in this town was less than in most 
places of its size. Slavery existed, to a limited extent, in the 
State, up to the adoption of the constitution in 1780, when it 
was annulled by the organic law. But it never extended far 
into the interior, and where it existed, it was in a modified form. 

33 



254 



As the polls returned in 1770, furnish the only complete list 
of the inhabitants at that day, I will insert them, with the 
number of polls against each householder. 



Names. Polls. 

Samuel Brigham 1 

Uriah Brigham 1 

George Brigham 2 

Ithamar Brigham 1 

Paul Brigham 1 

Ephraim Brigham 3 

Joseph Brigham 2 

Benjamin Brigham 3 

Asa Brigham 1 

Solomon Brigham 1 

Caleb Brigham 2 

Peter Bender 1 

Job Carley 2 

Adonijah Church 3 

Jonathan Clefard 1 

Ezekiel Clisby 1 

Jacob Felton 2 

Silas Gates 1 

William Goddard 2 

John Gleason 1 

Joseph Gleason 1 

Elizur Holyoke 1 

Joseph Howe 1 

Joseph Howe, Jr 2 

Samuel Sherman 2 

David Smith ] 

John Smith 1 

Nathaniel Smith 1 

Samuel Smith 1 

Manning Sawin 1 

Jason Sherman 1 

Joseph Townsend, Jr 1 

Jonathan Temple 1 

John Warren 2 

John Weeks 1 

Francis Weeks 1 

Samuel Witt 1 

Samuel Witt, Jr 1 

Daniel Ward 1 

John Woods 1 

Josiah Wilkins 1 

Joseph Wheeler 1 



jSomPfl. Polls. 

Alpheus Woods 2 

Joseph Williams 

Jabez Walcutt 

Thomas Walkup 

Benjamin Whitcomb 

Josiah yVitt 

Solomon Bowker 

Benjamin Wilder 

Jonathan Weeks 

Samuel Hunting 

Josiah Howe 

Witherbee Whitney 

John Priest, Jr 

Benjamin Sawin 

Thomas Berry 

Charles Whitcomb 

John Baker 

John Whitney 

Amos Edmands 

Jacob Heminway 

Aaron Eames 

John Shattuck 

William Speakraan 

G. William Speakman 

Joseph Darling 

John Huntford 

John Bannester 

Solomon Barnard 

Daniel Barnes 

Daniel Barnes, Jr 

Solomon Barnes 

John Barnes 

Moses Barnes 

Aaron Barnes 

Henry Barnes 

Jonathan Barnes, Jr 

John Barnes, Jr 

Edward Barnes 

Mary Beaman 

Noah Beaman 

Peter Bent 3 

Jonas Bartlett 1 



255 



Names. Polls. 

William Boyd 1 

Abijah Berry 1 

Ivory Bigelow 1 

Jonathan Bigelow 1 

Joel Bigelow 1 

Noah Bigelow 1 

William Bigelow 1 

Thaddeus liowe 1 

Phinehas Howe 1 

Artemas Howe 1 

Elizabeth Howe 1 

Abraham Howe 1 

Asa Howe 1 

Eleazer Howe 2 

Luther Howe 1 

Luke Howe 1 

Elisha Hudson 1 

Simon Howe 1 

Elisha Hedge 1 

Moses Howe 3 

Lucy Howe 1 

Noah Howe ] 

Edward Johnson 1 

Hezekiah Maynard 1 

Ichabod Jones 1 

Zaccheus Maynard 1 

Solomon Newton 1 

Ezekiel Newton 1 

John Parker 1 

Josiah Parker 1 

Andrew Rice 3 

Jabcz Rice 4 

Jonah Rice 3 j 

Zerubbabel Rice 2 

Abraham Rice 3 1 

Jesse Rice 3 

Gershom Rice 2 

Ebenezer Richard 1 

John Richard 1 

Joseph Stratton 1 

Jonathan Stratton 1 

Samuel Stratton 1 

Rediat Stewart 1 

Josiah Stow 1 

Samuel Stanhope 1 

Robert Sinclair 1 



Xftincs. Poils. 

Jonas Temple 1 

Jonathan Tainter 1 

Abraham Williams 3 

Larkin Williams 1 

George Williams 1 

William Williams 1 

James Woods 2 

Moses Woods 1 

Peter Wood 2 

Samuel Ward 2 

Silas Wheeler 1 

Caleb Winchester ] 

Reuben Ward 1 

William Slack 1 

Joshua Bayloy 1 

Joseph Lamb 1 

Jonathan Robinson 1 

James Bowers 1 

Samuel Curtis 1 

Abraham Amsden . . 2 

Joseph Arnold 2 

Robert Baker 1 

Winslow Brigham ] 

Jonathan Barnes 1 

Fortunatus Barnes 1 

Frederick Barnes 1 

Thomas Bigelow 1 

Gershom Bigelow ] 

Timothy Bigelow 1 

Jesse Bush 2 

Micah Bush 2 

John Bruce 1 

William Bruce 1 

Samuel Bruce 1 

Amasa Cranston 2 



Abner Cranston . . . 

Thomas Carr 

Daniel Cook 

Robert Cane 

Timothy Cheney . . 

John Demont 

Benjamin Dudley.. 

Lucas Dunn 

John Darling 

Alexander Boyd . . . 
Hezekiah Maynard 



256 



Sanies Tolls. 

Stephen Hale 1 

Samuel Phillips 1 

Levi Fay 1 

Ephraim Barber 1 

Francis Stevens 1 

Samuel Havens 1 

Jack Rice 1 

Silas Carley 1 

Moses Fay 1 

Samuel Ward 1 

Silas Rice 1 

John Dexter 2 

Robert Fames 2 

Robert Fames, Jr 1 

Uriah Eager 1 

Uriah Eager, Jr 1 

Jonathan Eager 2 

John Eager 2 

Aaron Eager 1 

Nathaniel Faulkner 1 

Archelaus Felton I 

Nathan Goodale 1 

Abel Goukling 3 

Phinehas Gates 1 

John Gold 1 

Nathaniel Gibbs 1 

Abigail Hapgo9d 1 

Mary Hapgood 1 

Pet-er Howe 1 

Seth Howe 1 

Peter Howe, Jr 2 

Thomas Howe, Jr 2 

Ebenezer Hager 1 

William Hager 1 

Daniel Harrington 2 

James Harrington 1 

Edward Hunter 5 



Daniel Hayden 

Jacob Hale 

Jacob Harrington 

John Maynard 

Ebenezer Maynard 

Ebenezer Joslin 

Nathan Mann 2 

Micah Newton 2 

William Newton 2 

Joshua Newton 1 

Adonijah Newton 1 

Benjamin Rice 1 

John Randall 1 

Jabez Rice, Jr 1 

Nathan Reed 1 

Simon Stow 3 

Samuel Stevens 3 

Silas Jewell 1 

Thomas Goodale 1 

Jonathan Loring 1 

Joseph Lawes 1 

Jonas Morse 1 

William Morse 1 

Jonas Morse, Jr 1 

Stephen Morse 2 

Ephraim Maynard 4 



Ephraim Maynard, Jr. 

John Priest 

Joseph Potter 

Ephraim Potter 

John Putnam 

Abraham Randall .... 

David Rand 

Thomas Stow 

Samuel Stow 

Josiah Stow 

John Stow 



PETER BENT, 
SAMUEL STOW, 
EDW^ARD BARNES, 



Assessors for 
1770. 



The men who paid the largest tax in Marlborough, at this 
period, were Ephraim Brigham, Henry Barnes, Joseph Howe, 
Peter Bent, Hezekiah Maynard, and Zerubbabel Rice. 



257 

In 1781, it appears by a return made by the Assessors of 
Marlborough to the Legislature, that there were at that time in 
the town, 370 polls ; 186 dwelling-houses ; 177 barns ; 93 
shops, stores, &c. ; 7 distilleries, mills, &c. They also return 
1,260 acres of English mowing, valued at 12 shillings per 
acre ; 930 acres of tillage, at 20 shillings ; 1,733 acres of fresh 
meadow, at 6 shillings ; 4,160 acres of pasturing, at 4 shillings ; 
5,368 acres of wood and unimproved land, at 5 shillings ; 
2,946 barrels of cider, at 2/6 ; £3,000, money at interest ; 
£800, of goods, wares, and merchandise ; 747 horses, at 
£1,482; 396 oxen, at £2,372; 852 cows, at £3,408; 1,586 
sheep and goats ; 200 swine ; 182 coaches, chaises, wagons, 
&c. &c. ; 30 ounces of gold ; 450 ounces of silver. 

We have no regular valuation of the property of the town, 
till 1800. By the State tax for several years, we see how 
Marlborough stood in the State and County, which shows her 
relative position. The view below not only shows the relative 
standing of the town, but the burdens they were called u})on to 
bear at that period. The taxes mentioned below, are simply 
the County and State tax, and do not include the sum added to 
the State tax, to reimburse to the State treasury the sum paid 
to Representatives of the town for their per diem. 

1774 of a Tax of £12,614 for the State, and £1,346 for Middlesex, Marlboro' paid £84 

432 

" " * l,29o 

l,8o0 

1,21.5 

" " 1,373 

" " 837 

" " 1,542 

334 

171 

133 

133 

«« " 86 

" " 172 

$573 

573 

" " 573 

There is one striking fact discoverable in the early taxes, viz. 
that almost every man owned the house in which he resided. 

* In the tax of 1781 was included a fine for not furnishing the full quota of 
soldiers for the six and three months' service — a fact not peculiar to Marlbo- 
rough. There were two taxes in 1781. 



1780 


72,090 


8,945 


1781 


374,795 


45,046 


1781 


303,634 


38,238 


1782 


200,000 


25,492 


1783 


224,099 


25,492 


1784 


140,000 


17,831 


1786 


300,439 


36,540 


1788 


65,000 


9.223 


1789 


32,606 


4,549 


1790 


25,360 


3,573 


1791 


«' 25,365 


3,585 


1793 


20,008 


3,893 


1794 


40,067 


4,995 


1795 


$149,759 


$16,080 


1796 


133,394 


16,659 


1797 


133,381 


15,582 



258 



In the land tax of 1798, imposed by the General Government, 
of the one hundred and eighty houses, of the value of one hun- 
dred dollars and over, only eleven of them were occupied by 
tenants. This fact shows, that in Marlborough nearly all the 
heads of families were owners of real estate. 

As it is desirable to open the century with a knowledge of 
the inhabitants of the town, the following list of tax-payers is 
subjoined. For convenience, they are arranged in alphabetical 
order. 



A. 

Moses Ames. 
Robert Ames. 
Stephen Ames. 
Ebenezer Ames. 
Jesse Ames. 
Reuben Ames. 
William Arnold. 
Winslow Arnold. 
John Arnold. 

B. 

Edward Barnes. 
Edward Barnes, Jr.i' 
Jacob Barnes. 
Solomon Barnes. ^ 
Stephen Barnes. 
William Barnes. 
Lovewell Barnes. \ 
Jonas Bartlett. 
Joel Bartlett. 
Ephraim Barber. 
Peter Bent. 
Jabez Bent. 
Abijah Berry. 
William Boyd. 
John Boyd. 
Ephraim Brigham. 
HoUis Brigham. 
Willard Brigham. 
John Gott Brigham. 
Abner Brigham. 
Joseph Brigham. 
Ashbel S. Brigham. 
Warren Brigham. 
Paul Brigham. 
Aaron Brigham. 
Trowbridge Brigham. 



Jedediah Brigham. 
Daniel Brigham. 
Joseph Brigham, Jr. 
Ithamar Brigham. 
Caleb Brigham. 
Caleb Brigham, Jr. 
Asa Brigham. 
Lewis Brigham. 
Jotham Brigham. 
Noah Brigham. 
Matthias Brigham. 
Solomon Brigham. 
Lovewell Brigham. 
Ivory Brigham. 
John Bond. 
Gershom Bigelow. 
Timothy Bigelow. 
Ephraim Bigelow. 
Ivory Bigelow. 
William Bigelow. 
Gershom Bigelow, Jr. 
Samuel Brown. 
Deliverance Brown. 
Francis Barnard. 
William Barnard. 
William Bruce. 
Jonathan Bruce. 
Isaiah Bruce. 
Nathaniel Bruce. 
Jeduthan Bruce. 
Peter Burder. 
Samuel Burder. 



Jonathan Clifford. 
William Cogswell. 
Enoch Corey. 
Amos Cotting. 



Benjamin Clark. 
Elisha Cox. 
Joel Cranston. 
Job Cooley. 
Ananias Cook. 
Ephraim Carr. 
Solomon Clisbee. 

D. 
Jonas Darling. 
Daniel Darling. 
Elijah Dadman. 
Lovewell Dunn. 
Charles Dexter. 

E. 

Uriah Eager. 
Moses Eager. 



Stephen Felton. 
William Felton. 
Archelaus Felton. 
Joel Felton. 
Silas Felton. 

G. 

Silas Gates. 
William Gates. 
Samuel Gibbon. 
Abner Goodale. 
John Gleason. 
Joseph Gleason. 
Zaccheus Gleason. 
James Gleason. 

H. 

Samuel Howe. 



259 



liUther Howe. 
Ephraim Howe. 
Elcazer Howe. 
Simon Howe. 
Aaron Howe. 
John Howe. 
John Howe, Jr. 
John Howe, 3d. 
Josiah Howe. 
Artemas Howe. 
Jonas Howe. 
Solomon Howe. 
Thomas Howe. 
Francis Howe. 
Francis Howe, Jr. 
Joseph Howe. 
Joseph Howe, Jr. 
Joseph Howe, 3d. 
Phinehas Howe. 
Gilbert Howe. 
Noah Howe. 
Winslow Howe. 
Jonah Howe. 
William Howe. 
Levi Howe. 
Aaron Howe, Jr. 
Sylvanus Howe. 
Abraham Howe. 
John Howe. 
Lovewell Howe. 
William Hagcr. 
Daniel Hall. 
Phinehas Hall. 
Francis Hudson. 
Nahum Haydcn. 
Jesse Hay den. 
Daniel Hayden. 
David Hunter. 
Ilobert Hunter. 
Thomas Hapgood. 
Joseph Hapgood. 
John Hapgood. 
John Hapgood, Jr. 
Aaron Hapgood. 
Thomas Hapgood, Jr. 
Samuel Hunting. 
John Harrington. 

■ J. 

Ephraim Jewell. 



Silas Jewell, Jr. 
Silas Jewell, 3d. 
Jacob Jewell. 
Gustavus Jewell. 

L. 
John liOring. 
AVilliam Loring. 
John Lewis. 
Joseph Lamb. 

M. 

Hczekiah Maynard. 
Ephraim Maynard. 
Elihu Maynard. 
Elijah Maynard. 
Abel Maynard. 
John Maynard, Jr. 
John Maynard, 3d. 
Simon Maynard. 
Benjamin ^laynard. 
Ephraim Maynard, Jr. 
Loring Manson. 
David Munroc. 
David Munroe, Jr. 
John Munroe. 
Jonas Moore. 
Francis Morse. 
Stephen Morse. 
William Morse. 
AVindsor Morse. 

N. 

Jabez Newton. 
Francis Newton. 
Daniel Nurse. 

O. 

Joseph Oxford. 

P. 

Nathaniel Phillips. 
Roger Phelps. 
Ephraim Potter. 
Eliab Parminter. 
Nathaniel Prentiss. 
John Perigo. 
Abraham Priest. 
Benjamin Priest. 
Jonathan Priest. 



Joshua Pierce. 
Thomas Park. 

11. 
Luke Robinson. 
Jabez Rice. 
Noah Rice. 
Ephraim R. Rice. 
Gershom Rice. 
Daniel Rice. 
Elisha Rice. 
Eber Rice. 
Eleazer Rice. 
Benjamin Rice. 
Benjamin Rice, Jr. 
Peter Rice. 
Eli Rice. 
Jonah Rice. 
Nathan Rice. 
Thomas Rice. 
Joel Rice. 
Seth Rice. 

Nathaniel P. Russell. 
Abraham Russell. 

S. 
Micah Sherman. 
Isaac Sherman. 
Solomon Sherman. 
Moses Sherman. 
John Sawin. 
Manning Sawin. 
Timothy Sawin. 
Daniel Stevens. 
Frahcis Stevens. 
Daniel Stevens, Jr. 
Ileman Stow. 
Joab Stow. 
Samuel Stow. 
John Stow. 
William Stow. 
Abraham Stow. 
Josiah Stow. 
Jabez Stow. 
Peter Stone. 
Elijah Saunders. 
Jonas Smith, 
William Smith. 
Calvin Smith. 
Jeduthan Smith. 



260 



Phinehas Sawyer. 



Jonas Temple. 
David Temple. 
Isaac Temple. 
John Temple. 
John Temple, Jr. 
Moses Temple. 
Silas Temple. 
Joseph Townsend. 
Joseph Trowbridge. 
Joseph Taynter. 
John Taynter. 
Jonathan Taynter. 



W. 

Oliver Wiswall. 
Thaddeus Warren. 
George Williams. 
Stephen Williams. 
David Williams. 
Moses Woods. 
Jedediah Wood. 
James Webber. 
Jonathan Weeks. 
John Weeks. 
Jonathan Weeks, Jr. 
Simeon Whitcomb. 
Silas Wheeler. 
Asa Wheeler. 
Caleb Winchester. 



Samuel Witt. 
Silas Witt. 
Josiah Witt. 
Moses Woodward. 
Sampson Winch. 
Ephraim Walcott. 
James Wesson. 
William Wesson. 
Stephen Wesson. 
Thomas Whitney. 
Jonas Wilkins. 
Edward Wilkins. 
Solomon Wilkins. 
Levi Wilkins. 
David Wilkins. 



It seems by this list, that there were in Marlborough, in 
1800,277 tax-payers; and besides this number, there were 60 
poll tax-payers under twenty-one years of age, and other polls 
not taxed. We also discover the prevalence of the three 
principal names in town, Howe, Brigham, and Rice, which 
stand as follows : Howes 31, Brighams 25, and Rices 17 — 
making an aggregate of 73, being nearly one-third of the whole 
list. 

From the imperfect records we have been able to obtain, the 
valuation of the town in the different periods will stand as 
follows : 

Valuation of Marlborough, from 1770 to 1860, as far as can be ascertained. 



Year. 


Polls. 


Houses. 


Oxen. 


Cows. 


Real Estate. 


Personal Estate. 


Aggregnte. 


1771 


323 


J69 


394 


933 








1781 


370 


186 


396 


852 








1790 


410 


213 


... 


.... 








1800 


416 


233 


. . . 


.... 






253,200 


1810 


419 


238 




.... 






252,066 


1820 


434 


254 




.... 


247,042 


78,246 


325,288 


1830 


454 


288 




.... 


485,805 


121,451 


607,256 


1840 


559 


325 


331 


1,180 


623,807 


155,951 


779,758 


1850 


834 


458 


361 


1,288 


948,931 


286,506 


1,235,417 


1860 


1,591 


922 


257 


1,113 


$1,587,606 


$414,130 


$2,001,736 



Marlborough has not been distinguished for her manufactures 
till quite recently. Having only an inconsiderable water-power, 
she has had no factories of any note. Some forty-five or fifty 



261 

years ago, there was a small cotton factory at Feltonville, but it 
produced nothing except yarn. There was also a fulling mill, 
and a cloth-dressing establishment at the same place ; but its 
business was mostly that of customers who brought in their 
cloth to be dyed and dressed. There were also several tanne- 
ries, whose business was mainly confined to the demands of 
the town. They had the ordinary mechanics, such as shoe- 
makers, blacksmiths, and wheelwrights ; yet none of them de- 
pended, in any great degree, upon a foreign market for their 
productions. Being mostly engaged in agriculture, the people 
sought their supply from their own town, and the mechanics 
aspired at little more than furnishing their neighbors and friends 
around them. 

In 1837, a census of manufactures was taken by order of the 
Legislature, when the products of Marlborough stood as follows: 

Shoes manufactured, 10.3 000 pairs; value of the same, $41,200; males 
employed, 75 ; females, 75. Tanneries, 2 ; hides tanned, 2,t)00 ; value of 
leather tanned and curried, $11,500; hands employed, 7; capital invested, 
$G,000. 

Manufactories of chairs and cabinet ware, 2; value of product, $1,000; 
hands employed, 4. Straw bonnets manufactured, 7,500 ; value of the same, 
$10,850. 

Only two articles in this list deserve notice : the straw bon- 
nets, which speak well for female industry ; and the shoes, 
which at that time gave employment to one himdred and fifty 
persons. Some twenty-five years before, the shoe business had 
been introduced on a small scale, and this business, which has 
since done so much to build up the town, had in 1837 grown 
up to a product of 100,000 pairs, valued at $-41,000. The boot 
and shoe business has rapidly increased within a few years, so 
as to render the town somewhat distinguished for this species 
of manufacture. 

A census of the productions of the State, published in 1845, 
shows the product of Marlborough as follows : 

Tanneries, 2; hides tanned, 1,560; value of leather tanned and curried, 
$3,9.50 ; capital invested, $5,700 ; hands employed, 4. 

Boots manufactured, C24 pairs ; shoes, 302,725 pairs ; value of boots and 
shoes, $92,932; males employed, 1.58 ; females employed, 220. 

Straw braid and bonnets, value, $5,1()8 ; females employed, 182. 

Building stone quarried, value, $600 ; hands employed, 5. 
34 



262 

Lumber prepared, 15,000 feet; value, $2,040. 

Firewood prepared, 948 cords ; value, $2,521. 

Sheep, 147 ; value, $298 ; wool, 588 lbs. ; value, $176. 

Horses, 281 ; value, $12,G45 ; neat cattle, 1,819 ; value, $39,226. 

Swine, 493 ; value, $3 697. 

Indian corn, 14,376 bushels; value, $10,782; rye, 1,966 bushels; value, 
$1,484 ; barley, 1,365 bushels ; value, $683 ; oats, 4,254 bushels ; value, 
$1,594; potatoes, 37,005 bushels ; value, $9,251 ; other esculent vegetables, 
1,255 bushels ; value, $314 ; hay, 4,169 tons ; value, $33,477. 

Fruit raised, 12,469 bushels ; value, $6,013 ; hops, 2,000 lbs. ; value, 
$200 ; honey, 367 lbs. ; value, $62. 

Butter, 82,905 lbs.; value, $14,093; cheese, 16,251 lbs, ; value, $812. 

Milk sold, 60,540 gallons ; value, $5,045. 

Apples for vinegar, 31,772 bushels ; value, $2,224. 

Here is a grand total of $249,187 ! But it must be borne 
in mind that the live stock is set down at its real value, and 
not at its productive value. It would be fair to set down this 
stock at one-fourth of its real value, that being about the annual 
worth of all classes of animals. If we take three-fourths of 
the value of the live stock from the total, we shall have as the 
annual product of the industry of the town, the sum of $207,- 
288. But as such statistics, though taken from the mouths of 
the producers, are generally under estimated; we may with 
perfect safety add six per cent to the estimate, which will in 
round numbers bring the industrial production of Marlborough 
in 1845 up to $220,000. The greatest increase is in the shoe 
manufacture, which in 1837 was set down at $41,200, and in 
1845 at $92,900. 

The Industrial Tables for 1855 show the following as the 
production of Marlborough : 

Saddle, harness and trunk manufactory, 1 ; value of product, $5,000 ; 
capital invested, $1,500 ; hands employed, 4. 

Tin ware manufactories, 2 ; value of product, $5,800 ; capital, $2,000 ; 
hands employed, 4. 

Tanneries, 1 ; hides tanned, 2,000 ; value of leather, $3,500 ; hands, 2. 

Boots of all kinds, 103,500 pairs; shoes of all kinds, 1,971,500 pairs; 
value of boots and shoes, $1,156,975; hands employed, 969 males and 973 
females. 

Whips, value, $150 ; hands, 1. 

Lumber prepared for market, 300,000 feet ; value of same, $4,200 ; hands 
employed, 6. 

Firewood prepared for market, 3,134 cords ; value, $14,003 ; hands em- 
ployed, 6. 



263 

Organ manufactory, 1 ; value of organs, $2,000. 

Establishment for making boxes, 1 ; capital invested, $500 ; value of pro- 
duct, $2,000 ; hands employed, 3. 

Bakeries, 1 ; capital, $2,000 ; flour consumed, 750 bbls. ; value of bread, 
$15,000 ; hands employed, 5. 

Horses, 441; value, $36,957; oxen and steers, 409; value, $19,8G1 ; 
cows and heifers, 1,002 ; value, $33,5G8 ; swine, 211 ; value, $2,114. 

Butter, 49,91() lbs. ; value, $12,474 ; cheese, 9,180 lbs. ; value, $734 ; 
milk sent to market, 49,702 gallons ; value, $(j,212. 

Indian corn, 033 acres (a- 34^ bushels per acre, 21,942 bushels; value, 
$20,396; rye, 98 acres i® 11^ bushels per acre, 1,127 bushels; value, 
$1,714 ; barley, 43 acres (a) 22| bushels per acre, 985 bushels ; value, $973 ; 
oats, 157 acres (a) 27 bushels per acre; 4,339 bushels; value, $2,7()3. 

Potatoes, 500 acres (a) 00 bushels per acre, 30,360 bushels ; value, $22,- 
628. 

Carrots, 10 acres (a) 420 bushels per acre, 4,200 bushels ; value, $1,260. 

Beets and other esculent vegetables, value, $200. 

Millet, 4 acres ; value, $60. 

English mowing, 3,229 acres ; 4,130 tons ; value, $82,000. 

Wet meadow or swale hay, 770 tons ; value, $7,700. 

Apple trees cultivated for fruit, 2.5,003 ; value, $16,015. 

Pear trees cultivated for fruit, 307 ; value, $302. 

Peaches, value, $1,564 ; quinces, value, $302. 

Cranberries, 50 acres ; value, $1,468. 

Here we have a total of $1,484,929 for 1855, against $249,- 
187 for 1845 — a gain of $1,235,742 in the annual product of 
the town in ten years. If we were to deduct three-fourths of 
the value of the live stock, as in 1845, it would give us the 
annual product of the industry of the town in 1855, $1,415,552 
— a gain of $1,208,264. On either estimate the gain shows an 
enormous increase in ten years. It must be confessed, how- 
ever, that the return in 1855 was more full and accurate than 
at any former period. But the principal gain is in the boot 
and shoe manufacture ; which rose from $92,932 in 1845, to 
$1,156,975 in 1855, being an increase of more than $1,064,000. 
This species of manufacture did not reach its maximum until 
1859 and '60, when the product of boots and shoes amounted to 
$2,000,000 a year ; giving employment to about two thousand 
men, and about seven hundred women. The falling off in the 
number of women employed, was owing to the introduction of 
machinery. 

Marlborough owes her rapid growth within the last ten years, 
to the introduction of manufactures. Though there may be 



264 

prejudices against such branches of industry, and some have 
regarded manufactures as hostile to agriculture, we are per- 
suaded that there is no natural antagonism between them. 
The manufacturer and mechanic must subsist upon the pro- 
ducts of the soil, and their presence in an agricultural district not 
only creates a demand for the product of the farmer, but brings 
the market to his own door. The Marlborough farmer, with 
his broad acres of grass and grain, not only finds a better market 
for his great staples in consequence of this increase of popula- 
tion, but can also dispose of his vegetables, fruits, and other 
smaller articles, for which there was formerly no demand. 

There is one evil incident to manufactures, which generally 
shows itself in a greater or less degree, viz., the introduction of 
a foreign and floating population, which may not harmonize 
with the native population. But this evil is destined to cure 
itself. The children of foreigners, born in this country, and 
educated in our schools with our own children, will soon be- 
come Americanized, and so make us all a homogeneous people. 
We must remember that our ancestors, as well as theirs, were 
of foreign birth ; and may we not trust that time will work the 
same change in them, as it has in us ; and eventually blend 
in harmony what is now somewhat discordant ? This foreign 
population, though perhaps disorderly in some respects, is nev- 
ertheless loyal, and as ready to sustain our institutions, as any 
other portion of our citizens, as recent events have clearly 
shown. As the tide of emigration has already abated, and the 
emigrants which now come to the country are a more intelligent 
class, we believe that a century hence, this foreign element 
will become so amalgamated and blended with our native 
population, that the distinction which is now so apparent will 
in a good degree be obliterated. 

The population of Marlborough did not increase with much 
rapidity till about 1840. From 1830 to 1840, the increase was 
only 18 ; but from 1840 to 1850, the increase was 800, being a 
gain of 38.24 per cent in ten years. From 1850 to 1855, as shown 
by the State census, the increase was 1,396, being a gain of 
48.27 per cent in five years ; and from 1855 to 1860, the in- 
crease was 1,622, being a gain of 37.82 per cent in five years. 

This increase of population is to be attributed mainly to the 



265 

introduction of the boot and shoe manufacture. This growth 
has been confined almost exclusively to the east and west vil- 
lages, and to Feltonville. The two centre villages were formerly 
considered as distinct from each other, being about a mile apart. 
But the location of the two railroad stations in a central position 
between them, has contributed, among other things, to fill up 
the space, so as to make the two villages one. Some of the 
largest buildings in the place are situated upon the isthmus 
which formerly connected the two settlements. The old vil- 
lages have not only extended their borders towards each other, 
but have opened new streets, and multiplied their dwellings, so 
as to become large villages of themselves ; and the union of 
the two, by filling up the space between them, has created a 
village of some five hundred dwellings, and nearly three thou- 
sand inhabitants. 

In the west village there are two churches, and in the east, 
three. There are, in the central villages, some fine dwellings, 
handsomely situated, to say nothing of the large and command- 
ing farm houses which skirt the villages, and so mingle agri- 
cultural with mechanical pursuits. There are in each village 
several large shoe manufactories, in which hundreds of hands 
are employed. In some of them, steam power is used. The 
shops of Boyd and Cory, situated near the southern depot, are 
large and capacious blocks, and give to the place the appear- 
ance of a city ; and being located on grounds which a few years 
ago were used only for agricultural purposes, indicate the growth 
of the town. 

But the most striking instance of growth is at Feltonville, in 
the north part of the town. Being situated on the Assabet, at 
the only place on that stream where the fall of water gives any 
considerable power, this site was early occupied as a mill privi- 
lege. Mr. Joseph Howe, son of Abraham Howe, one of the 
first settlers, erected a grist, and perhaps a saw mill, there, about 
the close of the 17th century. He died in 1700, and this prop- 
erty came into the hands of Jeremiah Barstow, who married 
Mr. Howe's eldest daughter. In 1723, Barstow sold for £G00, 
about 350 acres of land, including the mills, to Robert Barnard, 
then of Andover. This tract included what now constitutes 
Feltonville, on both sides of the river ; extending to the Indian 
line on the east, and to the Bush Place, and Lancaster (now 



266 

Bolton) line on the north, "■ together with the dwelling-house, 
and other housings, with the fencing, orcharding, and garden 
belonging to said messuage, including the mill, with all the 
accommodations and materials." 

It appears that at that time there was but one dwelling-house 
upon the premises ; and the fact that the tract thus deeded 
consisted of about a dozen different lots, which Barstow had 
bought of different individuals, shows that this section of the 
town had been used as a sort of make-weight, the land having 
been granted in small lots to divers individuals. It further a}> 
pears by the deed to Barnard, that this section of the town was 
mostly unsettled, as the purchase is described as bounding for 
the most part upon common or undivided land — the " Bush 
place " being the only designation implying a settlement. In 
fact, the whole valley of the Assabet to the Indian line, having 
been included in the cow commons, it was not open for settle- 
ment till about 1700. This property remained in the Barnard 
family, till near the close of the century, when portions of it 
were alienated to different individuals, till it all went out of 
their hands. 

The " Mills," as the little settlement was designated, re- 
mained a small village, Math a few houses and shops, for a 
long period. In 1820, the village consisted of thirteen or four- 
teen dwelling-houses, and one store in Marlborough, and two 
dwelling-houses just over the line, within the border of Bolton. 
The only thing which sustained the village at that period, was 
its water-power, driving the mills, a cloth-dressing establish- 
ment, and a small cotton factory. These establishments bring- 
ing people to the place, two enterprising citizens, Joel Cranston 
and Silas Felton, Esqs., opened and maintained an English and 
West India goods store in the village, and otherwise contributed 
to the growth and business of the place. 

But the introduction of the shoe manufacture has been the 
principal cause of its growth. In 1820, there were a black- 
smith and two or three other village mechanics ; now, there are 
in addition to the ordinary mechanics' shops, seventeen shoe 
shops, some of them of a large size, employing great numbers 
of persons. Then, there were thirteen or fourteen dwelling- 
houses ; now, there are on the same territory one hundred and 
forty ; then, there was but one store ; now, there are eight ; 



267 

then, there were two houses in the borders of Bolton, depending 
upon the business of the village ; now, there are twenty-five. 
There are in the village, at this day, a post-office and two 
meeting-houses, and every thing to denote thrift. In 1820, 
there were only about one hundred inhabitants, while in 1860, 
there were nearly eighteen hundred on the same territory. 

The opening of the raihoad to Feltonville, has undoubtedly 
contributed to the growth of the place ; but the principal in- 
crease is to be ascribed to the shoe manufacture. Of the seven- 
teen shoe shops, some of them arc large, and turn out great 
products. The principal shop, of P. Brigham & Company, is 
eighty feet by forty, four stories high, having good water- 
power, the most improved machinery, and every facility for the 
transaction of business. In 1860, this company employed three 
hundred men, notwithstanding the introduction of machinery, 
which greatly reduced the number of employees. Forty-five 
females were employed, and by the aid of the improved ma- 
chinery, it is estimated that this number were able to do the 
work of from four to five hundred in the ordinary way. In 
1860, this company manufactured 715,000 pairs of shoes, valued 
at $375,000. The sum disbiu'sed among the hands for their 
labor, for a single year, amounted to $95,000. 

Some of the other manufacturers have capacious shops, and 
do a large business. Mr. Houghton's shop is one hundred feet 
by sixty. He uses steam-power to propel the machinery. 
Another shop, (Mr. Stone's,) is eighty feet by sixty-six, in 
which horse-power is employed. These shops are three stories 
high, and being erected for the purpose, are well adapted to the 
shoe business. There are other shops of a smaller size, where 
the same business is prosecuted. The whole number of indi- 
viduals employed in this species of manufacture in the village, 
before the present depression of business, was about 975, and 
the annual value of the product, about $800,000. 

The villages of Marlborough present quite a city-like appear- 
ance. The buildings, the business, the brisk stir, and the hum 
of industry, impress us with the conviction that we are in the 
midst of an active, thriving population. And though the vil- 
lages, in their present condition, are of recent growth, the insti- 
tutions there established prove that the people are alive to 
public improvements. The town has an efficient Fire Depart- 



268 



ment, commenced in 1849, and legally organized in 1853. 
The inhabitants have for some years maintained a weekly 
newspaper, which is well snstained by subscribers and by ad- 
vertising patronage. 

They have recently established a Mutual Fire Insurance 
Company, which bids fair to become a flourishing and valuable 
institution. Its condition is thus stated in the return to the 
Legislature in 1860 : 



Amount of property insured, . 
Premiums and deposits, . 
Premiums and deposits in cash. 
Policies terminated the past year. 
Policies issued the past year, . 
Insured on real estate, . 
Insured on personal property, . 
Losses during the past year, . 



$1,184,914.88 
139,9G4.10 

5,117.9G 
155,718.50 
192,305.1,3 
958,744 50 
226,170.38 

2,850.00 



The following is the organization of the company : 

President — Mark Fay. 

Secretary — IloUis Loring. 

Directors — Mark Fay, J. S. Witherbee, Hollis Loring, Charles Brigham, J. E. 
Curtis, Elbridge Howe, B. F. Underbill, of Marlborough ; Warren Nixon, of 
Framin^ham ; Epbraim Stone, of Sudbury ; Peter P. Howe, of Southborough ; 
C, S. Hastings, of Berlin. 

They have also a Savings Bank in the town, incorporated in 
1860. Their first return, made a short time after their organi- 
zation, and before they had fairly commenced operations, shows 
that they had made a fair beginning. 

Number of depositors, ....... 81 



Amount of deposits, ..... 
Loans on mortgages of real estate, 
Loans on personal security, .... 
Cash on hand, 

The following are the officers of the institution 



$1,788.00 
500.00 
800.00 
488.00 



Presidetit — Samuel Boyd. 

Vice President — Jabez S. Witherbee. 

Secretary — John ^I. Farwell. 

Treasurer — Mark Fay. 

Trustees — Thomas Corey, William Morse, 2d, S. A. Chipman, B. F. Under- 
bill, Levi Bigelow, F. Brigham, A. C. Felton, Hollis Loring, Asa Lewis, Wil- 
liam Stetson, William P. Brigham, of Marlborough ; William Maynard, of 
Assabet ; P. P. Howe, of Southborough ; A. W. Seaver, of Northborough ; 
C. S. Hastings, of Berlin ; Epbraim Stowe, of Sudbury. 



269 

In this connection, it seems proper to mention a benevolent 
bequest, which has given rise to what may be regarded as an 
institution of the town. In 1775, Mr. Zachariah Maynard, 
actuated by a regard for the "industrious poor" of the town, 
made by his last will and testament the following provision for 
their encouragement and relief: 

"It is my will that my dwelling-house, and whatever goods and chattels 
may be found in it, together with my barn, be sold by my Executor ; that the 
money they are sold for, with my other money, as also my notes and bonds, 
and whatever may in any wise be found due me, be committed into the 
hands of the Selectmen of Marlborough, and to remain under their care and 
direction, and their successors in said office forever, to be let out at interest ; 
the principal never to be diminished ; the interest to be distributed annu- 
ally, among such industrious poor and needy families, and persons, as the 
Selectmen or Overseers do not consider themselves obliged by law to pro- 
vide for; and among such also as may be reduced to straits by extraordinary 
providences ; and the distribution to these respective objects be according 
to the discretion of the major part of the Selectmen for the time being." 

This property being disposed of according to the will of the 
donor, created a fund of about one thousand seven hundred dol- 
lars, which at six per cent gives an annual income of about one 
hundred dollars, to be distributed for the purposes expressed in 
the bequest. Too much praise can hardly be given to Mr. 
Maynard, for his truly wise and benevolent donation. Distrib- 
uted as this income has been, it has proved a great blessing to 
many a worthy citizen of Marlborough. Though the law 
makes it the duty of the towns to provide for the poor — and 
Marlborough has not been remiss in her duty in this respect — 
there is in this, and every community, a class of persons who 
can support themselves under ordinary circumstances, but who, 
in times of sickness or misfortune, find themselves nearly desti- 
tute. Such persons are luiwilliug to go to the alms-house, or 
become a direct charge upon the town ; and if they can have 
some trifling aid in their misfortune, they are relieved from 
that humiliation, which arises from being classed with paupers. 
This feeling, which is perfectly natural, should be fostered ; for 
as long as an individual maintains a regard for his own reputa- 
tion, and cherishes self-respect, he will endeavor so to demean 
himself as to merit the respect of others. 

The wisest benevolence, the truest philosophy, and the 

35 



270 

purest dictates of religion consist in teaching, and if need be, 
enabling every one to maintain that feeling of self-respect, 
which is one of the great springs of action in the human heart, 
prompting to generous and noble deeds. The encouragement 
held out by such bequests, may do much towards sustaining 
some unfortunate and desponding individuals, in the days of 
darkness and distress. The bequest of Mr. Maynard has, we 
have no doubt, preserved many a person from yielding to 
adversity, has wiped the tear from the cheek of the lone 
widow, and lighted up a smile upon the countenance of the 
helpless orphan. This " Zachary money," as it is commonly 
called, distributed, as it has been, without ostentation and 
parade, carries joy into many families, and may justly be re- 
garded as one of the wisest of charities. Though the sum thus 
bestowed upon an individual is generally small, its moral influ- 
ence, which is one of the distinguishing characteristics of this 
charity, may be great in sustaining the unfortunate. 

The name of the generous donor should be handed down 
from generation to generation, that his noble charity may prompt 
others to imitate his example. Well have the people erected a 
stone to the memory of Zachariah Maynard with this in- 
scription : 

" A man who, from a tender and benevolent regard to the Industrious 
Poor of the Town, gave all the substance of his house to feed them." 

Every American citizen who realizes the worth of free insti- 
tutions, must cherish with gratitude the memory of our gallant 
sires, who periled all in defense of our independence. In the 
exercise of these feelings, we delight to record the deeds, and 
even to hand down the names of those who rallied at freedom's 
call, and "jeopardized their lives in the high places of the 
field." And while we rejoice in the deeds of these patriots 
and heroes, and as dutiful citizens do honor to their memories, 
we should be guilty of great injustice did we not do homage 
to the gallant young men of our day, who, when they saw our 
institutions, assailed, our constitution violated, our flag insulted, 
and all that we hold dear as freemen put in jeopardy, rallied 
at the call of their country, showing their readiness to shed 
their blood, if need be, in defense of those institutions reared 
by the wisdom and cemented by the blood of their ancestors. 



271 

We have recorded the names of those who served in the 
war of independence, and common justice requires that we 
hand down the names of those who have vohmteered to serve 
their country in this day of her peril. Marlborough, in 1775, 
was prompt in freedom's cause, and Marlborough, in 1861. has 
shown that the fire of patriotism still burns upon her altar. 
Her young men, at this day, have shown that they are "worth 
their breeding," and will, we have no doubt, do honor to the 
town they represent, and to the memory of their fathers. 

Marlborough has recently sent three companies, together 
with a band, to the war, for the period of three years, the 
names of which will be seen below. 

A distinguished citizen thus describes the companies and the 
band : 

" The first company that volunteered was from the Irish 
population of the town. They were hi camp on Long Island, 
in Boston Harbor, several weeks, with the Ninth Massachusetts 
Regiment, for discipline and drill, and on the 11th day of June 
were sworn into the service of the United States, and a few 
days after, as Co. G in said regiment, under command of Col. 
Cass, left for the seat of way near the city of Washington. 

" The other two companies were Rifles, and were in camp 
at Fort Independence several weeks previous to being sworn 
into the United States service. They composed a part of a 
regiment of Rifles, viz., companies F and I of the Thirteenth 
Regiment Massachusetts Volimteers, were sworn in on the 
16th day of July, and left a few days after, under the command 
of Colonel Leonard, for the seat of war, in the neighborhood 
of the company that had preceeded them. 

" The ' Marlborough Cornet Band,' an association of young 
and inexperienced musicians, by three years' industry and close 
application, had acquired a very commendable notoriety, as an 
organized band. With two or three exceptions, where vacan- 
cies were supplied by others, they were engaged by the Govern- 
ment to join this regiment, and were sworn in on the 27th day 
of July, for three years, or during the war, and in three or four 
days after, left with the Thirteenth Regiment." 



272 



Roll of the Marlborough Cornet Band, attached to the Thirteenth Regiment 
of the Massachusetts Volunteers. 



Name. 

T. C. Richardson 
F. W. Knapp . . 

E. P. Richardson 

F. W. Loring . 
John Brown . . 
W. G. Howe . . 
J. M. Holt . . . 
A. B. Lawrence 

E. J. Morton . . 
Edwin Rice . . 
S. A. Howe . . 
Elbridge Lane . 
Silas B. Ball . . 

F. W. Gassett . 
J. B. Fuller . . 
C. F. VVetherbee 
W. R. Wetherbee 
Henry H. Nash . 
Frank O. Ward . 
John Viles .... 



Age. 

26 
25 
24 
. 19 
. 30 
. 23 
. 24 
. 32 



22 
22 
20 
47 
24 
28 
20 
21 
21 
35 
19 
44 



Uank. 

Band Master 
Musician 



Sudbury. 
Marlborough. 
Northborough. 
Marlborough. 



Rutland. 
Marlborough. 

Berlin. 
Marlborough. 

Boston. 
Waltham. 



Roll of Company G, JVinth Regiment (Irish) Massachusetts Volunteers. 

Residence. Name. Age. Rank. 

Marlborough John Carey 25. . . .Captain. 

Boston John M. Tobin 25 1st Lieut. 

" Archibald Simpson 26 2d " 

" Edward Tinerty 27 1st Serg. 

" Timothy Dempsey 27 2d « 

Marlborough Daniel J. Regan 21.... 3d " 

" Michael Clark 21 4th " 

Boston James R. Goodwin 30. . . .5th " 

Randolph Francis Carey 22. ... 1st Corp. 

Marlborough John Feeley 26 2d " 

« Edward Conley 27 3d " 

« Robert Dailey 23.... 4th " 

« John Buckley 27 5th « 

« William Keating 20 6th » 

" Dennis Linnehan 30 7th " 

" James Mahoney 24 8th " 

" Thomas Shilben 20 Musician. 

Brighton Charles Curran 18 ... . " 

Milford William M. Armstrong, 33 Wagoner. 

Marlborough John Allen 23 Private. 

" Michael Allen 23.... " 

" Michael Ahem 25.... " 

«' Thomas B. Brigham 21 « 

« Michael Burns 19 " 

" Patrick Burk 30.... « 

" Eugene Burns 25... " 

Southbridge Edward Byrne 23.... » 



273 



Marlborough Samuel Bailey 22. . . .Private. 

Lynn Thomas Conley 2G. . . . " 

Marlborough Michael Coughlin 21 " 

" Cornelius Cotter 18 " 

" Peter Chirk 25 « 

" Thomas Clancy 19 " 

" John Creed 25 " 

" James Carey 22 ... . " 

" Lawrence Cramer 2'J " 

PatrickClark 2:3.... 

" William Cennars 37 " 

" John Coomars 22 " 

" John Crowley 20 " 

New York city Francis Clements 19 " 

Boston James Collins 24. ... " 

Lynn Thomas Dooley 18. . . . " 

Marlborough John Dolan 22 . " 

" Mathew Dugan 22 " 

" John E. Donovan 24 " 

" John Donovan 29 " 

Lynn Michael Farley 22 " 

Braintree Cornelius Furphey 22. ... " 

Hopkinton Richard Feely 20 " 

Natick John Fitzgerald 25 " 

Marlborough Bartholomew Finnerty 25. . . . " 

" Divan Fullard 28 " 

" Martin Faley 18 " 

Braintree Richard Furppe 19 " 

Marlborough William Hayes 24. ... " 

Southborough John Hagerty 29. ... " 

" Michael Hagerty 19 " 

Cambridgeport Thomas Hackett 21 " 

Lynn Henry Kane 22 " 

Boston William Kelcher 27 " 

Marlborough Bryan Kenney 20 " 

" Lawrence Kelley 20 " 

" Charles W. Levett 18 " 

" Cornelius Long 20 " 

Boston John Murphy 19 " 

" John McCurdy 19 " 

Marlborough John Mahoney 23. . . . «' 

Boston Owen McCarty 26 " 

Marlborough William Mahoney 30. ... " 

Boston William Murnane 22 " 

Saxonville Michael McGrath 19 " 

Michael McCann 20 " 

Marlborough Patrick Murray 20. ... " 

" Peter McQueene 21.... " 

" Cornelius McHugh 18 " 

" Patrick McDermott 18 " 

Thomas McGuire 34 " 

Marlborough Edward Nevin 19 " 

Weymouth Landing. Richard O'Brien 35 " 

Marlborough Joseph Penshea 41.... " 

Salem John N. Purbeck 25 " 

Marlborough Charles Quinn 20 " 

Abington Andrew Ryan 21 " 



274 



Residence. Name. Age. 

Marlborough Thomas Rice 24. . 

" Jeremiali Sullivan 27. . , 

" Edward Svveney 18. ., 

" John Smith 19... 

" Maurice Sullivan 19 . . , 

" James Sherman 19 . . . 

« John Sheahan 20 . . , 

" Cornelius Shea 20... 

" Bernard Smith 18.., 

" Lewis Stone 20. . , 

Boston Patrick Schollard 20. . , 

" George A. Stewart 20... 

Marlborough Daniel Sullivan 20. . . 

" Michael Tobin 26. . , 

♦• Patrick Tighe 23... 



Hank. 

• Private. 



Roll of Company F, {Rijles,) Thirteenth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers. 



Residence. Name. Age. 

Bolton Henry Whitcomb 42. . . 

Marlborough Abel H. Pope 36. . , 

Charles F. Morse 28... 

" Calvin Carter 24.. 

" Donald Ross 31.. 

Berlin Enoch C. Pierce 31 . . , 

Boston James Gibson 24. . . 

Marlborough Henry Exley 23 . . . 

Edwin N. Welch 25... 

" James H. Belser 

" Thomas M. Exley 25... 

" George N. Bridgewater 27. . , 

Sudbury Almir H. Gay 27. . . 

Marlborough George L. Custy 28. . . 

ZebithB. Woodbury 19... 

Northborough James L. Stone 23 . . . 

Marlborough Sydney A. Brigham 20. . . 

Cambridge Harry F. Newell 31 . . , 

Marlborough Charles S. Bennett 30. . , 

" George H. Bayley 19.., 

" Dennis Marr 19... 

" Samuel E. Hunt 21... 

Sudbury Henry S. Battles 24. . , 

Marlborough John S. Fay 21 . . , 

William A. Newhall 24. . . 

Stow John A. Trow 19. . . 

Marlborough Granville N. Harris 20. . . 

" Jonathan A. Maynard 21. . . 

Sudbury George T. Dickey 35. . . 

Marlborough Ledra A. Coolidge 24. . . 

" William B.Barnes 24... 

Wayland George T. Smith 20... 

Sudbury John H. Moore 21 . . . 

" Spencer Smith 20. . , 



Rank. 

.Captain. 
.1st Lieut. 
.2d « 
.1st Serg. 
.2d « 
.3d " 
.4th " 
.5th « 
.1st Corp. 
.2d " 
.3d « 
.4th " 
.5th " 
.6th " 
.7th " 
.8th " 
. Private. 



275 



Iteaii!enc«. N»mo. Age. Rank. 

Marlborough William P. Howe 19. . . .Private. 

Stow George L. Swift 19. . . . " 

Sudbury Mortimer Johnson 19. ... " 

Berlin Samuel E. Fuller 22 " 

Marlborough Simon F. Hartford 2! . . . . " 

Sudbury George T. Willis 18 " 

" Charles C. Haynes 24 » 

Marlborough Washington I. Lothrop 23. ... " 

" George A. Atkinson 25.,.. " 

Berlin Thomas F. Rathburn 20 " 

Weymouth J oseph E. Shepherd 23 ... . " 

Marlborough Henry J. Brigham 25.... " 

Sudbury Samuel H. Garfield 18 " 

Bolton Francis M. Remmings 19 " 

Sudbury Francis II. Brown 19 ... . " 

Berlin George H. Mason 2() " 

" Augustus Harper 2Ji . . . . " 

Marlborough Abel B. Hastings 18 " 

" Charles L. Brigham 23 »' 

Berlin John N. P. Johnson . . . ^ 42 " 

Sudbury George W. Jones 22. ... " 

Berlin Charles II. Roundy 18 " 

Marlborough Charles E. Perkins 27. ... " 

" Jonathan P. Mann 24 " 

" George F. Manson 29. ... " 

" George E. llartwell 19 " 

" Daniel K. Bigelow 24 " 

" Charles S. Smith 22. . . . " 

Berlin Francis B. Russell 29 " 

Marlborough William V. Brigham 19. . . . " 

" Lewis Roberts 24.... " 

" Silas A. Coolidge 29 " 

" Andrew J. Mann 19 " 

" Alphonzo W. Prouty 25 " 

Berlin Charles A. Howe 28 " 

Marlborough Frank Jones 30 ... . " 

" Charles H. Holder 18.... " 

" George Wilson 32 " 

" Luke Collins 44 " 

" Jedediah Morse .33 " 

" WilburH.Rice 18 " 

Berlin Elliot A. Rich 20 " 

Bolton Ezekiel W. Choate 24 '• 

Berlin Edward Barnard 23 " 

Boston Hartley G. Metcalf 22 " 

Marlborough Eli H. Wood 21 ... " 

Sewell H. Morrill 24.... 

" Nathan R. Wheeler 24 " 

Berlin Joseph M. Sawtell 21 " 

Marlborough Thomas J. Odd 27 " 

Boston William D. Barron 22 " 

Marlborough Augustine G. Walcott 37 " 

" Moses E. Stone 20 " 

Berlin HoUis L, Johnson 23 ... . " 

Boston Samuel Vaughn 26 " 

Marlborough James M. Carron 23 " 

" Frederick H. Morse 26 ... . " 



276 



Re»l(lene«. Name. Age. Rauk. 

Marlborough George W. Cross 19. . . .Private. 

Bolton Samuel M. Haynes 28 " 

Marlborough Seth G. Haskell 31 " 

» John Belser 22 " 

Boston George H. Mead 23 " 

Marlborough Cyrus H. Brown 22 " 

HoUiston George F. Daniels " 

" George F. Waller " 



Roll of Company I, [Rijles,) Thirteenth Regiment Massachusetts Volunteers. 

Reaidenc«. X»mc. Age. Rank. 

Boston Robert C. H. Shriber 26. . . .Captain. 

Marlborough Moses P. Palmer 27. . . .1st Lieut. 

« David L.Brown 34 2d " 

Bolton John G. Whittier 25 1st Serg. 

Marlborough William Barnes 38. . . .2d " 

Alfred G.Howe 36.... 3d " 

" Frank J. Wood 4th " 

« Willis Whitcomb 22 5th " 

" Charles H. Cotting 6th " 

Southborough George O. Grady 23 Ist Corp. 

Marlborough William Baker 34 2d " 

" Frank Stetson 35 3d " 

Southborough Charles S.Parker 18 4th " 

Marlborough George F. Smith 27 5th " 

" William W. Willis 25.... 6th " 

Matapoisett James A. Smith 23 7th •' 

Marlborough Eugene A. Albee 20 8th " 

" James M. Gleason 17.... Drummer. 

" John S. Felton 20....Fifer. 

" Samuel D. Witt Wagoner. 

" William A. Alley 19 Private. 

" Austin D. Brigham 25 " 

Southborough George Brown 23 " 

Marlborough Edward E. Bond 17 " 

" George T. Brigham " 

Framingham Joseph E. Butman 18. . . . " 

Worcester George E. Curtis 19 ... . " 

Yarmouth Isaac B. Crowell 20 « 

Marlborough Henry J. Calahan 24 ... . " 

« George M. Cuthbert 37 " 

» Robert Choate 33 " 

Boston John M. Collins " 

Marlborough George E. Dean 20 " 

Boston Dennis J. Donnovan 19 " 

" Simeon B. Fenderson " 

Marlborough Peter Flynn 26. . . . " 

South Boston William P. Farkerson 18 " 

Marlborough Ellery E. Goodwin 18. . . . " 

" Theodore H. Goodnow 18.... " 

" Gerhart Gentner " 

«» Frank Hastings 21.... " 



277 



Kesldeuoe. Nam*. Aga. Rauk. 

Hyannis Albert F. Holmes 22 Private. 

" Davis P. Howard 20 

Marlborough Henry A. Holyoke 25. . . . 

" Eugene J. Holyoke li* . . . . 

" Rufus Howe /. 20 

" Cranston Howe lit ... . 

South Boston Albion L. Jackson 18 ... . 

Marlborough John F. Kienert 

North Cambridge . ..John W. Kirby ]i> 

Princeton Charles T. Love 1!). . . . 

Boston Henry Lorey 

Marlborough Amos C. Merrill 2r) 

" Michael Murphy 28 

Antigonish, N. J. . . .Alexander McGilvray 20 

Marlborough Charles W. Moshier 18. . . . 

West Albany, Vt Edward H. Moshier 21 

Southbojough George H. Moore 27. . . . 

Marlborough Theodore Mahan 

" Osceola V. Newton 23 

" Lysander P. Parker 

Boylaton Benjamin Parker 2!J. . . . 

Marlborough Sylvanus H. Parker 23. . . . 

» John F. Peebles 

" John M. Pierce 19 

Southborough Lowell P. Parker 20 

Marlborough Lauriman H. Russell 34 ... . 

" Moses P. Rice 22 

" John F.Rose 31 

" Benjamin F.Russell 24. . . . 

Southborough Francis M. Stowe 18. . . . 

" Charles Scott 

Shelburne, Vt Charles Stone 19 

Marlborough Warren J. Stetson 17 ... . 

" James Sullivan 

Malone, N. Y John L. Spencer 24 

Boston Josiah Stone 

Marlborough William A. Shute 29. . . . 

Millbury George H. Turkey 20 

Boston Charles H. Fernald 19 

Marlborough Algernon S. Smith 36. . . . 

" Levi Taylor 

" Benjamin J. Whittier 28 

" John F.Wright 28 

" William H. Wight 30 

" William L. Weeks 19 

Sandwich Horace L. Crocker 19 ... 

Boston Samuel Sargeant .25. . . . 

Marlborough John M. Russell 20, . , . 

36 



CHAPTER XIII. 

OFFICIAL HISTORY. 

List of Selectmen — List of Town Clerks — List of Town Treasurers — List of 
Assessors — List of Representatives — List of Senators — Committee of 
Correspondence — Delegates to Conventions — Deacons of the Churches — 
Justices of the Peace — Votes for Governors — List of Governors — List of 
Graduates. 

In this chapter Ave present the names of those who have 
filled the principal offices in the gift of the town ; and though 
the matter may not be very readable, it will be interesting to 
the parties and their friends, and valuable for reference. Such 
facts sometimes are found important, as a matter of personal 
history, showing the estimate put upon an individual by his 
fellow-citizens. But we regret that the loss of one volume 
of the Records will prevent a full and perfect list ; though, 
in some cases, this defect has been supplied from other sources. 
The plan we have adopted is, to place the first man who 
fills any particular office, at the head of the list, with the year, 
in full, in which he was first elected ; and the subsequent years, 
in an abbreviated form, will show how often and in what 
years he filled the office. For example, if A. B. was elected 
to an office, and continued in the place by re-election, at dif- 
ferent times, it wpuld be presented thus: 

A. B. 1678—81, 86, 88, 93, 99, 1701, 2, 6, 10, 12. 

This would show that he was first elected in 1678, and the 
dash ( — ) shows his re-election to 1781, inclusive, and his sub- 
sequent re-elections, each year, are expressed by contraction, 
found against his name, making a total service of thirteen years. 
In this way, by a good deal of labor, much information may 
be compressed into a small space. 

We place at the head of the list, the Selectmen, or *' Towns- 
men,''^ as they are denominated in many of the old records. In 



279 



our early history, before the duties of town officers were clearly 
defined, the Townsmen, or Selectmen, exercised a great variety 
of powers. Any thing and every thing, not expressly provided 
for, fell by custom at least, within their jurisdiction ; and when 
any perplexing question arose in town meeting, almost as a 
matter of course, it was handed over to the Selectmen without 
instructions, as though they were the fomitain of power, if not 
of wisdom. The practical effect was, that in the choice of 
those officers, the people were more particular than they are at 
this day, when the powers of town officers are more limited and 
better defined. To be a Selectman in those days — to be re- 
garded as one of the " fathers of the town," and a depositary 
of almost unlimited power — was considered no small honor. 

The importance our fathers attached to this, and in fact to 
many of the principal offices, will be seen by the length of 
time they continued the men in office. Believing that " prac- 
tice makes perfect," — a maxim applied to other subjects, — was 
as true here as elsewhere, they were generally careful not to 
change any of those boards often, or the whole board at a time. 
In this way, they were sure of retaining some experience in 
every board. This is a lesson by which the present generation 
might profit. 

List of Selectmen from the Incorporation of the Town of Marlborough to the 
present day, as far as can be ascertaititd from the Records. 

Thomas Brigham, 1740, 43. 
Daniel Stewart, 1740, 41, 53. 
Joseph Howe, 1740, 41, 44, 46, 54. 
Daniel Barnes, 1740, 41, 52, 60, 61. 
Samuel Stevens, 1741. 



Edmund llice. 1661-64. 
^William Ward, 1661-6.5, 71. 
John Ruddocke, 1661-65, 71. 
John Howe, Sen., 1661-64. 
Thomas King, 1661-64. 
Solomon Johnson, 1661-65, 71. 
Thomas Goodnow, Sen., 1661-63, 65 
John Woods, 1664, 65. 
AVilliam Kerly, Sen., 1665, 71. • 
John Maynard, 1707, 10. 
Samuel Brigham, 1707, 10. 
Abraham Eager, 1707. 
Joshua Rice, 1707, 10. 
John Bowker, 1707, 10. 
Zerubbabel Eager, 1739. 
Edward Barnes, 1739. 
Robert Barnard, 1739, 45, 47. 
Joseph Baker, 1739, 41. 



Joseph Morse, 1741, 46. 

Uriah Eager, 1741, 52, 53, 55, 56, 58, 

60, 62, 68, 69. 
Joseph Tainter, 1741. 
James Woods, 1741-49, 55-57. 
Abraham Williams, 1741-43, 46-49, 52, 

54. 
Samuel Witt, 1740, 42, 44, 45, 47, 48, 

50, 53, 54. 
Samuel Brigham, 1741, 42, 44, 46, 48, 

49, 54, 
Jedediah Brigham, 1741, 43, 47, 52. 
Andrew Rice, 1743, 60, 58, 63. 



♦ There are no town records extant from 1665 to 1739. 



280 



Jonathan Barnes, 1743, 57, 59, 62. 

Jabez Ward, 1743. 

Abraham Beaman, 1744. 

John Warren, 1744, 46-50, 52-61, 63-65, 

67. 
Jonas Morse, 1744, 49, 52, 55. 
Abraham Howe, 1745, 53, 57, 61. 
John Hapgood, 1745, 49, 53, 55, 57, 59, 

60. 
John Sherman, 1745. 
Thomas Howe, 1745, 46, 61, 63, 71. 
Samuel Jones, 1747, 48. 
Ephraim Brigham, 1749, 50, 54, 56-59, 

61, 62, 65, 67, 69. 
Joseph Brigham, 1749, 62, 64. 
Hezekiah Maynard, 1750, 65, 71, 73. 
Peter Bent, 1750, 56, 59, 66, 67, 70-72, 

74, 77. 
Thomas Bigelow, 1750, 62, 65. 
Jabez Rice, 1752, 55. 
John Weeks, 1753, 54, 56, 58-60, 62-65, 

70, 73. 
Samuel Brigham, 1755. 
Jesse Rice, 1756, 57, 66, 68, 70. 
Abraham Rice, 1758, 60, 61, 63, 64, 66, 

69, 70, 73. 
Joseph Hapgood, 1758, 63, 64, 66, 67. 
John Banister, 1759. 
.Daniel Ward, 1760, 61. 
Daniel Harrington, 1762, 66, 68, 69, 

71,72. 
Joel Brigham, 1763, 72. 
Gershom Bigelow, 1763, 64. 
John Barnes, 1764. 
Uriah Brigham, 1765, 68, 69. 
Gershom Rice, 1765-70, 72, 74, 75. 
Ebenezer Dexter, 1766, 68. 
Nathan Goodale, 1767, 69. 
Simon Stow, 1767, 71, 75, 76, 78, 79, 

82, 83, 85, 87. 
Manning Sawin, 1768, 72, 79-83, 87. 
Winslow Brigham, 1770-80, 82, 84, 86, 

88, 89, 91. 
Joseph Brigham, 1771. 
Nathan Reed, 1772. 
Robert Baker, 1773. 
Edward Barnes, 1773-75. 
George Brigham, 1774-76. 
Silas Jewell, 1774. 
Cyprian Howe, 1774, 78. 



Ithamar Brigham, 1775, 76, 78, 79, 82. 
Jonas Morse, Jr., 1775-77, 80-82, 86, 

87, 89. 
Silas Gates, 1776, 79-81, 83, 85, 87. 
Alpheus Woods, 1776, 87. 
Edward Hunter, 1777, 79. 
Paul Brigham, 1777. 
Solomon Brigham, 1777. 
Jacob Felton, 1777. 
Moses Woods, 1778, 83, 84, 86, 88, 92, 

93, 95-98. 
William Brigham, 1778, 82, 85. 
Samuel Stevens, 1778. 
Joseph Howe, 1779. 
William Boyd, 1780, 87. 
Daniel Barnes, 1780, 81, 83. 
Uriah Eager, Jr., 1780, 81, 83, 84, 86. 
Amasa Cranston, 1781. 
Samuel Curtis, 1781. 
Silas Bayley, 1782. 
Abel Holden, 1783. 
George Williams, 1784, 89-91. 
Benjamin Rice, 1784. 
Solomon Barnes, 1784, 86, 88. 
Samuel Stow, 1785. 
Jonathan Weeks, 1785, 88-91, 93, 94. 
Joel Rice, 1785. 
Peter Wood, 1785. 
J^bez Rice, 1786, 88. 
Thaddeus Howe, 1787. 
John Stow, 1788, 90, 92-94. 
Luther Howe, 1788. 
William Hager, 1789. 
Samuel Howe, 1789, 1800. 
William Morse, 1790, 93, 94. 
Noah Rice, 1790-1800. 
Edward Barnes, 1790-6, 98, 1802, 3. 
Archelaus Felton, 1790. 
Abner Goodale, 1791, 1800. 
Joseph Williams, 1791. 
William Loring, 1792. 
Daniel Brigham, 1792-94, 1797-1813. 
Samuel Gibbon, 1794-1800, 2, 9. 
Robert Hunter, 1795, 97-99, 1801, 3, 5. 
Aaron Brigham, 1795, 96, 1802-5. 
Stephen Morse, 1795, 96. 
Jonathan Hapgood, 1796-1800, 1802-9, 

11. 
William Weeks, 1797. 
Joseph Brigham, Jr., 1799, 1801. 



281 



Taul Brigham, 1801. 

John Loring, 1801, 11. 

Ithamar Brigham, 1801, 6, 9, 11-13. 

Stephen Eames, 1802-5, 8. 

Samuel Witt, 1802. 

Lovewell Barnes, 1803, 1810-17. 

Thomas Rice, 1804. 

Silas Gates, 1804, 5, 7, 8. 

Benjamin Rice, Jr., 1804, 7, 10, 16, 19, 

20-22. 
Micah Sherman, 1805-7, 9, 11-13. 
Joel Cranston, 1806-9. 
Joseph Howe, Jr., 1806-20. 
William Weston, 1806, 7. 
Ephraim Brigham, 1808. 
John Weeks, 1808-10. 
William Barnes, 1810. 
Jedediah Brigham, 1810, 14-10. 
Eli Rice, 1810, 23, 28, 29. 
William Gates, 1811-13, 15, 19-21. 
Abraham Stow, 1812, 13. 
William Howe, 1812, 13. 
Jabez Green, 1814. 
Jabez Stow, 1814, 
Silas Temple, 1814-16. 
Ephraim Maynard, Jr., 1814, 15, 17-19. 
Benjamin Clark, Jr., 1814. 
Silas Felton, 1815-25. 
Solomon Weeks, 1815, 1832-38. 
Ashbel S. Brigham, 1816. 
John Howe, Jr., 1816, 21, 22. 
John Stevens, 1817-19. 
Aaron Stevens, 1820-31. 
William Holyoke, 1822-27. 
Silas Newton, 1823-27, 42. 
Ephraim Brigham, 1824, 25. 
I«iaac Hayden, 1826-40, 44, 45, 58-60. 
Stephen Rice, 1826, 27. 
Jedediah Wood, 1828-31. 



Ephraim Howe, 1828-40. 

Stephen R. Phelps, 1830-35, 49-51. 

Ezekiel Bruce, 1832-34. 

George E. Manson, 1835-43, 58-60. 

Abel Rice, 1836-41. 

William Barnes, 1839-42. 

Winslow Barnes, 1841, 42, 44, 45. 

liCwis Bigelow, 1842. 

Stephen Morse, 1843, 58-60. 

Jacob Holyoke, 1843. 

Ephraim Fairbanks, 1843. 

Emerson Howe, 1843. 

Jabez S. Witherbee, 1844, 45, 47, 48, 

51-54, 57. 
Silas B. Fairbanks, 1844, 45, 54. 
Samuel Chipman, 1844, 45. 
David Goodale, 1846-48, 50, 51, 57. 
Francis Brigham, 1846, 47. 
Eber Howe, 1846-52, 
Jacob Fairbanks, 1847, 48, 
William H. Wood, 1849-50. 
Hollis Loring, 1849-51. 
Jacob Holyoke, 1852. 
Israel Howe, 1852, 
Ebcnezer Witt. 1852, 53. 
Dwight Witt, 1853, 
John F. Cotting, 1853, 54. 
Lyman Perry, 1853. 
Samuel Chipman, 1854, 55. 
Elbridge Howe, 1854-57. 
B. F. Underhill, 1855, 56, 58-60. 
George S, Rawson, 1855, 56, 
Charles Howe, 1855. 
George Brigham, 1856. 
Samuel E, Warren, 1856. 
Asa Lewis, 1857. 
George E, Woods, 1857. 
John Goodale, 1858. 



List of Toiim Clerks of Marlborough, from its Incorporation to the present 
time, u'ith the years each served. 

John Ruddocke was chosen 1660, and Nathaniel Joslin, 1714-25, 



continued perhaps till Philip's war, 
1675, There may have been another 
clerk between him and Williams, 

Abraham Williams, 1682-1700, 1702- 
12, 

Isaac Amsden, 1701, 12, 13. 



Abraham Eager, 1726-30. 

Joseph Stratton, 1731, 38, 

James Woods, 1732-37, 44-49. 

Andrew Rice, 1739-43, 50, 51, 

John Warren, 1752, 53, 56-61, 63-67. 

Samuel Brigham, 1754, 55, 



282 



Jonathan Barnes, 1762. 
Ebcnezer Dexter, 1768. 
Uriah Brigham, 1769. 
Winslow Brigham, 1770-80, 82. 
Samuel Curtis, 1781. 
Mpses Woods, 1783-1803. 
Benjamin Rice, 1804-6. 



Daniel Brigham, 1807-13. 
Jedediah Brigham, 1814. 
Silas Felton, 1815-27. 
Heman Seaver, 1828-31. 
Lambert Bigelow, 1832-53. 
John Phelps, 1854— 



The early Records of Town Officers give no Treasurer. 
Selectmen, Constable and Clerk appear to be the only officers 
chosen. As the Constables were, made the Collectors, it may 
be that the moneys which came into their hands were paid over 
to the Selectmen, who managed the pmdential affairs of the 
town, and took care of its property, which consisted mostly in 
real estate. From this circumstance, and loss of the records, I 
have found no recorded Treasurer, till 1739. The selection of 
a Treasurer was often left with the Selectmen. 



List of Town Treasurers 

Thomas Howe, 1739, 40, 65, 67-69 
George Brigham, 1741. 
Ephraim Brigham, 1742, 43, 50, 52 
Jonathan Barnes, 1744-47. 
Joseph Howe, 1748, 49. 
John Warren, 1765, 70. 
Hezekiah Maynard, 1771. 
Jonas Temple, 1772-74. 
Moses Woods, 1775-77, 79, 80. 
Simon Howe, 1778, 82-89. 
Benjamin Rice, 1781, 1819-25. 



of Marlborough to the present time. 

Noah Rice, 1790-1800, 
Daniel Brigham, 1801-13. 
■64. Jedediah Brigham, 1814-18. 
Mark Fay, 1826-32, 38, 42, 43. 
E. B. Witherbee, 1833, 34. 
Lambert Bigelow, 1835-37, 44-50, 52. 
John Phelps, 1839, 40. 
Hollis Loring, 1841, 51, 53, 54, 56. 
George Brigham, 1855. 
Winslow M. Warren, 1857 — 



As the custom and the law threw the duty of Assessor upon 
the Selectmen, the early records show no distinct class of 
Assessors. When the town of Marlborough commenced elect- 
ing that class of officers, the loss of records prevent our stating. 
We find no record till 1739, though some were probably chosen 
earlier. 

Ldst of .Assessors of the Town of Marlborough, from the earliest Records to 

tlie present time. 



Samuel Brigham, 1739, 40. 

Daniel Stewart, 1739, 41, 42, 44-48, 50, 

53, 56, 59. 
John Warren, 1739, 42, 45, 46, 52, 53, 

65. 



Abraham Williams, 1740, 45. 
John Warren, 1740, 42, 44-46. 
James Woods, 1740, 43, 53. 
Jonathan Barnes, 1740, 50, 56-59. 
John Banister, 1741, 48, 50, 52, 54. 



283 



Jabez Ward, 1744. 

Andrew Rice, 1746, 47, 55. 

Ephraim Brigham, 1747, 59-63, 65, 68. 

John Eager, 1752. 

Noah Church, 1754-58, 60-63. 

Peter Bent, 1754, 64-67, 69-72, 75. 

Hezckiah Maynard, 1757, 64. 

Robert Baker, 1758. 

Nathan Goodale, 1760-62, 68. 

Samuel Stow, 1762-68, 70, 71, 78, SO. 

Joseph Hapgood, 1766. 

Edward Barnes, 1767, 69, 70, 72-74, 

76, 77, 81, 86," 89-98. 
Winslow Brigham, 1769, 73-77, 81, 82, 

84-86, 88. 
Francis Weeks, 1771, 72. 
Asa Brigham, 1773, 74. 
Paul Brigham, 1775, 76. 
Alpheus Woods, 1775, 78, S3. 
Ebenezer Rice, 1777, 79. 
Silas Jewell, 1778, 80. 
William Boyd, 1779. 
Jonathan Temple, 1779. 
John W. Woods, 1780. 
Joseph Williams, 1781. 
Joel Rice, 1782-84. 
Archelaus Felton, 1783-91, 93-98. 
Benjamin Rice, 1785, 87. 
Jabez Bent, 1787. 
Uriah Brigham, 1788. 
Jonathan Weeks, 1789. 
John Loring, 1790-93, 99-1802. 
Daniel Brigham, 1794-99. 
William Barnes, 1797. 
Silas Felton, 1799-1803, 1805-25, 28. 
Aaron Brigham, 1800-6, 10. 



Silas Gates, 1803, 4, 10. 

Jedediah Brigham, 1804, 8. 

William Stow, 1805-7. 

John Stevens, 1807-9, 11-21. 

John Loring, 1809, 11-15. 

Silas Temple, 1816-19. 

Stephen Rice, 1820. 

Samuel Warren, 1820, 21, 25. 

Eli Rice, 1822, 23, 27. 

Truman Stow, 1823, 24, 26, 29-31. 

Levi Bigelow, 1824-39, 41, 42. 

Stephen Pope, 1826, 27, 34, 35. 

William Barnes, 1828-33, 38, 39, 42, 

44, 45, 52-56. 
Mark Fay, 1832-41, 43. 
Stephen Morse, 1836, 37, 40, 46-50, 

58-60. 
Edward Wilkins, 1840. 
Ebenezer Witt, 1841, 42, 44-48, 50, 

52-59. 
William II. Wood, 1843. 
David Goodale, 1843. 
William F. Barnard, 1844. 
Emerson Howe, 1845. 
Stephen R. Phelps, 1846, 47. 
Jabez Huntington, 1848. 
Charles Brigham, 1849. 
William Gibbon, 1849, 52-54, 57-59. 
Jabez S. Witherbee, 1850. 
Aaron Brigham, 1852. 
Dwight Witt, 1852. 
Edward A. Gay, 1855. 
Samuel B. Maynard, 1856. 
William Wilson, 1857. 
Levi Bigelow, 1860. 
B. F. Underbill, 1860. 



List of Representatives to the General Court, from the Toivn of Marlborough, 
from its Incorporation to the present day. In the early part of its history, 
tilt Town sometimes neglected to send a Representative. 

Samuel Brigham, 1697-99, 1705. 
Thomas Howe, 1700, 1, 4, 6, 11, 13, 
17-19. 



William Ward, 1666. 

Samuel Ward, 1679. 

Abraham Williams, 1679-82, 91, 93-96 

Joseph Rice, 1683. 

Obadiah Ward, 1689, 90. 

Henry Kerley, 1689, 93, 1703. 

John Brigham, 1689, 92. 

John Barnes, 1692. 



Thomas Beaman, 1707, 8, 12. 

Peter Rice, 1709-11, 14, 20, 21, 28-30. 

Thomas Rice, 1715, 16. 

William Ward, 1722. 

Caleb Rice, 1723-25, 27. 



284 



Nathan Brigham, 1726, 30. 

John Sherman, 1731, 32. 

Joseph Rice, 1733-36, 39. 

Ebenezer Witt, 1737. 

Samuel Erigham, 1741. 

Samuel Witt, 1745-49, 51-60, 62-70. 

James Woods, 1750. 

John Warren, 1761, 63. 

Peter Bent, 1771-75. 

George Brigham, 1776, 77, 81. 

Edward Hunter, 1777. 

Paul Brigham, 1777. 

Simon Stow, 1778-82. 

"Winslow Brigham, 1783, 84. 

Edward Barnes, 1787, 92-98. 

Jonas Morse, 1790. 

W^illiam Morse, 1791. 

Jonathan Weeks, 1800-2. 

Daniel Brigham, 1803, 10, 12-19. 

John Loring, 1804-8, 12-14. 

Ephraim Barber, 1810, 11. 



Samuel Gibbon, 1817. 
Joel Cranston, 1820, 21. 
Silas Felton, 1822, 24, 25. 
Daniel Stevens, 1828-31, 33. 
Eli Rice, 1830, 34-36. 
Levi Bigelow, 1831, 32, 34, 39. 
Sylvester F. Bucklin, 1835, 36. 
Isaac Hayden, 1837, 39-41. 
Ezekiel Bruce, 1840, 42. 
Abel Rice, 1843, 44. 
Lambert Bigelow, 1845. 
David Goodale, 1847, 48. 
Obadiah W. Albee, 1849, 51, 61. 
Francis Brigham, 1850, 52. 
Abraham W. Rice, 1854. 
Lewis T. Frye, 1855. 
Hollis Loring, 1856, 57. 
Leonard E. Wakefield, 1858. 
John Phelps, 1859. 
Horatio Alger, 1860. 
O. W. Albee, 1861. 



State Senators from Marlborough. 

Joel Cranston, 1813. Stephen Pope, 1837. 

Obadiah W. Albee, 1857. 



Delegates to the Provincial Congress. 



Peter Bent, 



Edward Barnes, 



George Brigham. 



Delegates to the Convention for Framing the Constitution, 1779-80. 

Edward Barnes, Moses Woods, 

Winslow Brigham. 



Delegates to the Convention to Ratify the Constitution of the United States. 
Jonas Morse, Benjamin Sawin. 

Delegate to the Convention in 1820, to Revise the Constitution of Massachusetts. 

Joel Cranston. 



Delegate to the Convention in 1853, to Revise the Constitution of Massachusetts. 

Isaac Hayden. 



285 



Committees of Correspondence. 



1772-75. 
Hezekiah Maynard, 
Alpheus Woods, 
Edward Bames, 
"William Boyd, 
Jonas Morse, Jr. 
Daniel Harrington, 
Samuel Curtis. 

1776, 77. 
Edward Bames, 
Paul Brigham. 
William Morse, 
Moses Woods, 
Gershora Rice. 

1778. 
Samuel Curtis, 
Nathan Mann, 
Jonathan Temple, 
William Boyd, 
John Stow. 



1779. 
Edward Barnes, 
Jonathan Temple, 
Robert Hunter, 
Benjamin Sawin, 
Jonas Morse. 

1779. 
Jonas Temple, 
Benjamin Sawin, 
Silas Barnes, 
Samuel Curtis, 
William Boyd. 

1780. 
Silas Bayley, 
Benjamin Sawin, 
Jonathan AVeeks, 
Joel Brigham, 
John Loring. 



1781. 
Josiah Stow, 
Silas Barnes, 
Thomas Rice, 
William Hager, 
Solomon Bowker. 

1782. 
Josiah Stow, 
Heman Stow, 
John Sawin, 
John Howe, 
Luther Howe. 



List of the Deacons of the Churches, stating the time of their election and 
deaths as far as they are known. 

First Church. 

William Ward, elected 1666 ; died August 10, 1687. 
John Ruddocke, elected 1687 ; died January 29, 1693. 
Edward Rice, elected 1687 ; died August lo, 1752. 
John Woods, elected September, 1704 ; died April 5, 1716. 
Joseph Newton, elected June 1, 1710 ; died September 24, 1727. 
James Woods, elected August 9, 1716 ; died August 7, 1718. 
Caleb Rice, elected March 12, 1718 ; died January 5, 1739, aged 72. 
Thomas Keyes, elected June 17, 1726 ; died August 25, 1742. 
John Bames, elected April 17, 1729 ; died April 5, 1752. 
Samuel Stevens, elected May 22, 1741 ; died December 6, 1761. 
James Woods, elected May 22, 1741 ; died April 10, 1772. 
Andrew Rice, elected October 14, 1742 ; died January 15, 1775, aged 72. 
Joseph Tainter, elected August 18, 1742 ; died February 19, 1764, aged 76. 
Daniel Bames, elected May 26, 1762 ; died March 24, 1775, aged 73. 
Samuel Stow, elected October 17, 1770 ; died January 12, 1808, aged 89. 
Simon Stow, elected October 17, 1770 ; died December 16, 1795, aged 73. 
Thomas Howe, elected March 20, 1776 ; died 
Samuel Howe, elected July 3, 1794 ; died July 31, 1820, aged 71. 
Abner Goodale, elected July 3, 1794 ; died May 16, 1823, aged 68. 
37 



286 



Josiah Howe, elected September 21, 1796 ; died January 15, 1827, aged 78. 
Jonathan Ilapgood, elected October 17, 1821 ; died April 12, 1849, aged 90. 
David Goodale, elected September 15, 1823 ; died October 17, 1858, aged 67. 
Ezekiel Bruce, elected March 13, 1827 ; died November 7, 1860, aged 76. 
William E. Tidd, elected December 16, 1836 ; dismissed May 2, 1851. 
John E. Curtis, elected April 5, 1855. 
Rufus Howe, elected July 2, 1858. 

West Church. 

Benjamin Rice, elected April 28, 1808 ; died September 24, 1833. 
William Barnes, elected April 28, 1808 ; died March 7, 1823. 
Moses Ames, elected April 28, 1808 ; died January 24, 1825. 
Eli Rice, elected May 15, 1823 ; resigned October 31, 1849. 
Stephen R. Phelps, elected September 22, 1825. 
Abraham W. Rice, elected October 31, 1849. 
Dennis Witherbee, elected December 27, 1849. 

Universalist Church. 
Willard Newton, Isaac Hayden, Truman Stow, Abel Brigham. 



List of Justices of the Peace, from the Incorporation of the Toivn to the 
present day, with the year of their appointment, so far as it is knoivn. 



Thomas Howe, 1707. 
John Fay, 1718. 
Benjamin Woods. 
Henry Barnes, 1766. 
Samuel Curtis, 1773. 
Peter Wood, 1783. 
Edward Barnes, 1800. 
Joseph Brigham, 1804. 
John Loring, 1809. 
Samuel Gibbon, 1809. 
Micah Sherman, 1809. 
Benjamin Rice, Jr., 1810. 
Joel Cranston, 1811. 
William Draper, 1813. 
William Barnes, 1817. 
Silas Felton, 1823. 
Richard Farwell, 1826. 
Martin L. Stow, 1826. 
Daniel Stevens, 1827. 
Levi Bigelow, 1830. 
Nicholas B. Proctor, 1834. 
Eli Rice, 1834. 
Ephraim Hinds, 1834. 



Stephen Pope, 1835. 
Solomon Weeks, 1838. 
William H. Wood, 1839. 
Winslow Barnes, 1845. 
Benjamin Rice, 1845. 
Nathaniel Langley, 1846. 
David Goodale, 1849. 
Stephen Morse, 1849. 
George S. Rawson, 1851. 
Isaac Hayden, 1851. 
Hollis Loring, 1852. 
William B, Gale, 1854. 
Jabez S. Witherbee, 1856. 
George E. Manson, 1855. 
Alexander Felton, 1856. 
Florintine W. Pelton, 1856. 
Elbridge Howe, 1858. 
John Chipman, 1858. 
James R. Dockray, 1860. 
John M. Farwell, 1860. 
James F. Joslyn, 1860. 
O.W.Albee, (TrialJustice,) 1861. 



287 



Votes for Governor, from the Adoption of the Constitution to the present day. 



1781 John Hancock, 


78 










1782 John Hancock, 


53 




1783 John Hancock, 


61 


Nathaniel Gorhara, . . 1 


1784 John Hancock, 


51 




1785 Tristam Dalton, 


24 


Benjamin Lincoln, . . 8 


1786 James Bowdoin, 


28 


John Hancock, . 




8 


1787 John Hancock, 


128 


James Bowdoin, . 




20 


1788 John Hancock, 


104 


James Bowdoin, . 




1 


1789 John Hancock, 


102 








1790 John Hancock, 


79 


James Bowdoin, . 




2 


171^1 John Hancock, 


78 








1792 John Hancock, 


73 


Charles Jarvis, 




2 


1793 John Hancock, 


74 


Elbridge Gerry, . 




8 


1794 Samuel Adams, 


93 


Elbridge Gerry, . 




17 


1795 Samuel Adams, . 


77 


Elbridge Gerry, . 




26 


1796 Samuel Adams, 


132 


Elbridge Gerry, . 




7 


1797 James Sullivan, 


138 


Increase Sumner, 




9 


1798 James Sullivan, 


105 


Increase Sumner, 




28 


1799 William Heath, 


123 


Increase Sumner, 




33 


1800 Elbridge Gerry, 


141 


Caleb Strong, 




15 


1801 Elbridge Gerry, 


152 


Caleb Strong, 






31 


1802 Elbridge Gerry, 


150 


Caleb Strong, 






29 


1803 Elbridge Gerry, 


86 


Caleb Strong, 






69 


1804 James Sullivan, 


127 


Caleb Strong, 






40 


1805 James Sullivan, 


131 


Caleb Strong, 






41 


1806 James Sullivan, 


132 


Caleb Strong, 






62 


1807 James Sullivan, 


163 


Caleb Strong, 






62 


1808 James Sullivan, 


153 


Christopher Gore, 




62 


1809 Levi Lincoln, . 


198 


Christopher Gore, 




57 


1810 Elbridge Gerry, 


205 


Christopher Gore, 




62 


1811 Elbridge Gerry, 


191 


Christopher Gore, 




67 


1812 Elbridge Gerry, 


208 


Caleb Strong, 




74 


1813 Joseph B. Vamum, . 


187 


Caleb Strong, 






77 


1814 Samuel Dexter, 


215 


Caleb Strong, 






75 


1815 Samuel Dexter, 


209 


Caleb Strong, 






75 


1816 Samuel Dexter, 


200 


John Brooks, 






65 


1817 Henry Dearborn, 


188 


John Brooks, 






70 


1818 Benjamin W. Crowninshic 


Ad, 148 


John Brooks, 






62 


1819 Benjamin W. Crowninshie 


Id, 180 


John Brooks, 






63 


1820 William Eustis, 


140 


John Brooks, 






63 


1821 AVilliam Eustis, 


150 


John Brooks, 






64 


1822 William Eustis, 


118 


John Brooks, 






64 


1823 William Eustis, 


195 


Harrison G. Otis, 




55 


1824 William Eustis, 


202 


Samuel Lothrop, 




47 


1825 Levi Lincoln, . 


164 


Charles Jackson, 




2 


1826 Levi Lincoln, . 


93 


Marcus Morton, . 




61 


1827 Levi Lincoln, . 


113 


William C, Jarvis, 




60 


1828 Levi Lincoln, . 


144 


Marcus Morton, . 




12 


1829 Levi Lincoln, . 


77 


Marcus Morton, . 




46 


1830 Levi Lincoln, . 


118 


Marcus Morton, 






65 



288 



1831 Levi Lincoln, . 

1831 Levi Lincoln,* 

1832 Levi Lincoln, . 

1833 John Q. Adams, 
John Davis, 

1834 John Davis, 

1835 Edward Everett, 

1836 Marcus Morton, 

1837 Marcus Morton, 

1838 Marcus Morton, 

1839 Marcus Morton, 

1840 Marcus Morton, 

1841 Marcus Morton, 

1842 Marcus Morton, 

1843 Marcus Morton, 

1844 George Bancroft, 

1845 Isaac Davis, 

1846 Isaac Davis, 

1847 Caleb Gushing, 

1848 Stephen C. Phillips, 
George N. Briggs, . 

1849 Stephen C. Phillips, 
George N. Briggs, . 

1850 Stephen C. Phillips, 
George S. Boiitwell, 

1851 John G. Palfrey, 
George S. Boutwell, 

1852 Horace Mann, . 
Henry W. Bishop, . 

1853 Henry Wilson, 
Henry W. Bishop, . 

1854 Henry J. Gardner, . 
Emory Washburn, . 

1855 Julius Rockwell, 
Erasmus D. Beach, . 

1856 Henry J. Gardner, . 
Erasmus D. Beach, . 

1857 Nathaniel P, Banks, 
Henry J. Gardner, . 

1858 Nathaniel P. Banks, 

1859 Nathaniel P. Banks, 

1860 John A. Andrew, . 



117 


Marcus Morton, . 


97 


Marcus Morton, . 


110 


Samuel Lothrop, . 


129 


Marcus Morton, . 


88 




129 


John Bailey, 


153 


Marcus Morton, . 


172 


Edward Everett, 


160 


Edward Everett, 


203 


Edward Everett, 


260 


Edward Everett, 


262 


John Davis, 


254 


John Davis, 


276 


John Davis, 


268 


George N. Briggs, 


246 


George N. Briggs, 


191 


George N. Briggs, 


118 


George N. Briggs, 


156 


George N. Briggs, 


123 


Caleb Cushing, . 


86 




177 


George S. Boutwell, . , 


98 




194 


George N. Briggs, 


122 




190 


Robert C. Winthrop, . 


130 




197 


John H. Clifford, 


172 




172 


Emory Washburn, 


116 




411 


Henry Wilson, . 


49 




200 


Henry J. Gardner, 


164 




421 


George W. Gordon, 


77 




269 


Erasmus D. Beach, 


113 




369 


Erasmus D. Beach, 


374 


Benjamin F. Butler, . 


515 


Erasmus D. Beach, 



In setting down the votes, I have put the name having the 
highest number first, irrespective of party, or the success of the 
candidate. At the first organization of the Government, there 
was no distinct party organization. About 1785 or '86, parties 
sprung up, but they were founded on temporary questions, which 



* Owing to an Amendment of the Constitution, there were two elections in 1831 ; 
one in April, and one in November. 



289 

soon passed away. About 1797 or "98, the Republican and 
Federal parties came gradually into being. The former were 
the advocates of the election of Thomas Jefferson, and the 
latter of John Adams for the Presidency. The principal ques- 
tions which divided the parties at that day, when reduced 
to principles, invoh^ed the great question of the power of the 
National Government. Mr. Adams was a known advocate for 
what was then termed a •' strong government." His views 
were assailed by the Republican party, as encroaching upon 
the rights of the States. This controversy gave rise to the 
famous " Resolutions of 1798," adopted by the State of Vir- 
ginia, which declared the Constitution of the United States 
to be a compact between the States, and put forth extravagant 
claims of State Sovereignty. These Resolutions were the 
fruitful source of nullification, and more recently of secession — 
Avhich are simply other names for insurrection — the evils of 
Avhich we are now experiencing. The parties continued under 
these names, but soon began to assume new positions ; so that 
as new questions came up, new issues were made, and the Re- 
publican party became the advocate of a strong National Gov- 
ernment, and the Federal party became the strict construction- 
ists in their turn ; though they never carried State rights to the 
excess of nullification and secession. 

After the war of 1812, the Federal party gradually faded 
away, and in 1825 there was in Massachusetts a political union ; 
and from that organization a new party arose, taking, in the 
first instance, the name of National Republicans, and after- 
wards that of Whigs, to denote their opposition to Executive 
prerogative. This party, in the State and Nation, were opposed 
to the Democratic party. 

In 1848, the Free-soil party arose in Massachusetts and sev- 
eral of the northern States, and supported Mr. Van Buren for 
the Presidency, who up to that time had been devoted to the 
interests of the South, and who, after the election was over, fell 
back into the ranks of the Democracy. About 1850 there was 
a combination of the Free-soil with a portion of the Demo- 
cratic party, known as the Coalition ; this organization was 
succeeded in 1854 by another, known by the appropriate 
name of "Know Nothings." 

In 1857, the Republican party was formed in Massachusetts, 



290 



and many of the northern States. Opposed to them were the 
Whig party till about 1856, when that party was mostly merged 
in the Republican party ; and the Democratic party, which was 
virtually dismembered in 1860. 

This explanation seemed to be necessary to a proper under- 
standing of the votes given, from time to time, for the respective 
candidates for Governor. 



The following list of Governors of the State unll shoio ivhen Marlborough 
acted ivith the irutjority of the people of the Commonwealth. 



John Hancock, . 
Jomes Bowdoin, . 
John Hancock, . 
Samuel Adams, . 
Increase Sumner, 
Caleb Strong, 
James Sullivan, . 
Christopher Gore, 
Elbridge Gerry, . 
Caleb Strong, 
John Brooks, 
William Eustis, . 
Levi Lincoln, 



1780-1784 
1785-1786 
1787-1793 
1794-1796 
1797-1799 
1800-1806 
1807-1808 
1809 
1810-1811 
1812-1815 
1816-1822 
1823-1824 
1825-1833 



John Davis, 
Edward Everett, 
Marcus Morton, . 
John Davis, 
Marcus Morton, . 
George N. Briggs, 
George S. Boutwell, 
John H. Clifford, 
Emory Washburn, 
Henry J. Gardner, 
Nathaniel P. Banks, 
John A. Andrew, 



1834-1835 
1836-1839 

1840 
1841-1842 

1843 
1844-1850 
1851-1852 

1853 

1854 
1855-1857 
1858-1860 
1861- 



List of Graduates from different Colleges, of persons from Marlborough, so 
far as they luive been ascertained. 

Thomas Banister, graduated at Harvard College, 1700 ; died 1716. He was 
son of John and Jane (Goodnow) Banister, born February 21, 1677. 

Robert Breck, grad. H. C. 1730. He was son of Rev. Robert Breck. He 
settled as a clergyman in Springfield, where he d. 1784. He was distinguished 
in his profession. 

Benjamin Woods, grad. H. C. 1739, and d. 1761. He was son of Benjamin 
Woods. 

Samuel Breck, grad. H. C. 1741. He was son of Rev. Robert Breck. He 
studied medicine, and was a surgeon in the French war, and d. at Springfield, 
1764. 

Abraham Williams, grad. H. C. 1744. He was son of Abraham and 
Elizabeth (Breck) Williams, b. 1727. He was a clergyman, ordained at Sand- 
wich, 1749, and d. at Framingham, Aug. 8, 1784. 

David Barnes, grad. H. C, 1752. He was son of Dea, Daniel Barnes, and 
was b. March 24, 1731. He was ordained as a clergyman at Scituate, Nov. 27, 
1754, and d. April 26, 1811, aged 80 years. He was distinguished in his pro- 
fession, and received in 1783 the Degree of Doctor of Divinity, 

Job Whitney, grad. H. C. 1758; d. 1761. 

Ebenezer Rice, grad. H. C. 1760 ; d. 1822. 

Antipas Stuart, grad. H. C. 1760; d. 1814. He was a clergyman, and a 
son of Daniel Stuart. 



291 

Bexjamix Brigham, grad. H. C. 1764. lie was son of Benjamin Brigham, 
■was settled as a minister at Fitzwilliam, N. II., and d. 1799. 

Jonathan Barnes, grad. H. C. 1770. He was son of Jonathan Barnes, 
and was settled as a minister at Hillsborough, N. H. He d. 1805. 

Jesse Rice, grad. H. C. 1772. He settled as a physician in New Hampshire. 
On the breaking out of the Revolution he adhered to the royal cause, and left 
the country. He was son of Jesse Rice, and d. 1839, aged 86. 

Samvel Brigham, grad. Dart. C. 1779. He studied medicine, and estab- 
lished himself in Boylston. 

Noah Rice, grad. H. C. 1777 ; d. 1820. He was son of Jabez Rice, and was 
a trader in Boston and Marlborough. 

Perley Howe, grad. Dart. C. 1790. He was a clergyman at Surrey, N. H., 
and was son of Simon Howe. 

John Bruce, grad. Dart. C. 1781 ; was a clergyman, and d. 1809. 

Daniel Woods, grad. H. C. 1795. He was son of Alpheus Woods, and d. 
at Roxbury, 1850. 

JoTHAM Bender, son of Peter Bender, grad. II, C. 1796 ; read law, and d. at 
Marlborough, 1800. 

Benjamin Rice, son of Benjamin, grad. H. C. 1796, and d. 1831. He 
entered no profession, was a farmer, and resided in Marlborough. 

Thomas Cole, grad. H. C. 1798, and d. in Salem, 1852. 

Israel Munroe, grad. H. C. 1800, and d. 1831. 

W^iLLiAM Brown Stow, son of Ileman Stow, grad. Williams C. 1811. He 
was settled as a clergyman at Wilmington, N. II. 

Martin Luther Stow, son of Heman Stow, grad. Williams C. 1813. He 
read law, and was in practice at Northborough, where he died. 

Frederick Adolphus Packard, son of Rev. Asa Packard, grad. II. C. 
1814. He read law, and commenced practice in Springfield. Subsequently he 
went to Philadelphia as editor of the publications of the American Sunday 
School Union, and has been elected President of Girajd College. 

Levi Brigham, son of Willard Brigham, grad. Williams C. 1833. He is a 
settled minister at Saugus. 

Charles Draper, grad. II. C. 1833. 

Willard Brigham, son of W'illard Brigham, grad. Williams C. 1838. He 
studied theology, and settled at Wardsborough, Vt. 

Edward Forbes Barnes, son of Edward Barnes, grad. II. C. 1838. He 
studied medicine, and settled in Marlborough. 

Roger Brown Hildreth, son of Dr. Ilildreth, grad. H. C. 1813. 

Edwin M. Bigelow, son of Levi Bigelow, grad. H. C. 1846. He is a lawyer 
in Boston. 

Daniel Waldo Stevens, son of Temple Stevens, grad. H. C. 1846. He 
studied theology, and is settled at Mansfield. 

Horatio Alger, son of Rev. Horatio Alger, grad. H. C. 1852. 

Henry Barnes, Charles W. Barnes, Joseph L. Ames, Henry Clark, 
George Whitmore, and perhaps others, of Marlborough, have graduated at 
different Medical Schools, and entered the profession within the last twenty 
years. 



NOTE. 

A History of the Towns which were set off from Marlborough, 
would be a valuable addition to the foregoing, as presenting a full 
view of the original township, with the descendants of the early set- 
tlers. Rev. Dr. Allen, of Northborough, has kindly furnished a 
Historical Sketch of that town, which will be read with pleasure and 
profit. 



HISTORICAL SKETCH OF NORTHBOROUGH. 



BY KEY. JOSEPH ALLEN, D. D. 



NoRTiiBOUouGii is the youngest of the four Borough towns, not 
having been incorporated till 17GG; although it became a precinct, 
known as the Second Precinct in Westborough, twenty-two years 
before ; viz., October 20, 1744, O. S., answering to October 31, N. S. 
It did not acquire the rank or enjoy the full immunities of a town till 
the commencement of the Revolutionary war, when, by a general act 
of the Provincial Congress, all incorporated districts were declared to 
be entitled to all the privileges and immunities of towns. 

From 1717, Avhen Westborough, then including the principal part 
of Northborough, was incorporated, till 1744, the inhabitants of the 
whole district formed one corporate body, who met together at the 
same place, for the transaction of public business and for public wor- 
ship, and made appropriations from the common treasury for the 
support of the minister, for the purposes of education, for the repair 
of the highways, «S:c., and, with the exception of public worship, this 
united action continued till 1766. 

Northborough contains, within its present limits, 10,150 acres — 
a little less than sixteen square miles. It is of irregular shape ; its 
greatest length being from the north-east to the south-west. It lies 
principally in a valley, between the high lands of Marlborough on the 
east, of Berlin on the north, and of Shrewsbury and Boylston on the 
west. This interval spreads out to the south, and extends to the hills 
of Hopkinton and Upton, including a large part of Westborough. 

The river Assabet, which has its sources in the hills of Grafton 
and Shrewsbury, runs through the town, forming part of the bound- 
ary line on the south-east, between Westborough and Northborough. 
It receives several tributaries in its course, and furnishes water-power 
for two cotton-mills and several saw and grist-mills and comb shops. 
Its general course is north and north-east, leading to Feltonville and 
Assabet, and thence to Concord, forming the north branch of Con- 
cord river, which falls into the Merrimac at Lowell. Its Indian name 
38 



294 

has been retained, which has also been given to a beautiful hill near 
the village, formerly called Liquor Hill. The principal streams that 
fall into the Assabet in its course through the town are : 1. Hop 
Brook, which, rising in Shrewsbury, crosses the south-west angle of 
the town, furnishing water-power for a saw-mill and grist-mill, and 
falls into the Assabet soon after that river enters the town. A small 
stream, called Bummit Brook, which carries the saw-mill of Jonathan 
Bartlett, falls into Hop Brook. 2. Stirrup Brook, the outlet of Great 
and Little Chauncy Ponds ; the former in Westborough, in the vicinity 
of the State Reform School ; the latter lying wholly in Northborough. 
This stream furnishes water-power for Bartlett's saw, shingle, and 
grist-mills, and falls into the Assabet in the north-easterly part of the 
town.* 3. Cold Harbor Brook, which, rising in Shrewsbury, and 
receiving a tributary stream from Rocky Pond in Boylston, furnishes 
water-power for two grist-mills and a saw-mill ; then running through 
Cold Harbor meadow, and crossing the road between the village and 
the Old Congregational Church, forming other mill-sites, falls into the 
river Assabet, a hundred rods below the bridge. - 4. Howard Brook, 
which, having its sources in the north-westerly part of the town, 
crosses the Clinton road a little to the north of the New Cemetery, 
furnishing water-power for a saw-mill and two or three comb-shops 
before it falls into the Assabet. 

The surface, though more even than that of most of the towns in 
Worcester County, is diversified by hills and valleys, by rocks and 
plains, by swamps and meadows. The soil is generally fertile, most 
of the cleared land producing fine crops of hay and grain, with excel- 
lent pasturage, especially on the hills. In the northern part of the 
town the land is very uneven, being composed of ledges of rock, prin- 
cipally gneiss, lying in strata, having in some places a dip of 70° or 
80°. This is the principal rock of this part of the State, though the 
strata differ widely in different localities, being less regular and loss 
easily worked in this region than in the towns farther south. There 
is a vein of hornblende running through the town from north-east to 
south-west, crossing the road that leads to "Westborough, and forming 
a hard ledge about a mile south of the Railroad station, and extend- 
ing through Cedar Swamp to Tomlin Hill, so called. 

In the westerly part of the town, the rocks are of a slaty structure, 
and seem to contain a good deal of iron ore, as the rock easily decom- 
poses when exposed to the air, having the appearance of iron-rust. 

* George C. Davis, Esq., informs me that from old records which he has seen, it 
appears that the stream that forms the outlet of Chauncy Pond, was called " Honey 
Brook," probably from the swarms of wild bees found in that vicinity. Stirrup Brook, 
80 called from a hill of that name in Marlborough, falls into Honey Brook below 
Bartlett Mills, and gives its name to the main stream. 



295 

Clay of a superior quality is found iu several localities, from which 
large quantities of brick have been made, many of which were used 
in building the Cochituate aqueduct. Limestone is also found in a 
few places, but it has never been worked to any considerable extent. 

The principal hills are Mount Assabet, overlooking the village, 
clotlied on the eastern declivity by a fine grove of oaks — the other 
sides, with the summit, being cleared and cultivated ; Ball Hill, at 
the north-west extremity, containing about 1,000 acres of excellent 
land for grazing or tillage ; Edmund Hill north of the village. Cedar 
Hill to the south-east, and Tomlin Hill to the south-west. Besides 
these, there are other beautiful elevations giving a pleasing variety to 
the landscape, some of which are cleared and converted into pastures, 
and others remain covered with a fine growth of forest trees. 

Besides artificial ponds formed by dams, there are only two natural 
collections of water worthy of mention. The larger of these is Little 
Chauncy Pond, near the State Reform School, and Solomon's Pond, 
in the north-easterly part of the town, so called iu commemoration of 
an Indian of that name who was drowned therein. 

The Village, so called by way of distinction, consists principally of 
buildings standing on half a mile of the main street, (which runs 
east and west, being a part of the old stage route from Boston to 
Worcester,) with such other buildings as are in close proximity to the 
Main street. Besides a goodly number of dwelling-houses, the vil- 
lage contains three handsome church edifices, two hotels, four English 
goods stores, a large shoe manufactory, a two-story brick school- 
house, the bank, the post-office, the rail-road depot, the engine-house, 
and the town-house. 

The other principal roads are the one leading to Westborough, one 
to Feltonville, one to Boylston, and two, one east and the other west 
of the old Congregational church, leading to Bei-lin, Clinton and 
Lancaster. 

Farming, in its various branches, furnishes employment to a large 
portion of the inhabitants, though many young men are engaged in 
the manufacture of combs and in the shoe business. The two cotton- 
mills on the Assabet have furnished employment to about fifty hands, 
and run two thousand spindles. One of these was destroyed by fire, 
December 3, 18G0, but will probably be rebuilt. This was the old 
cotton factory, erected by a company in the time of the last war with 
Great Britain, 1814, at a cost of $30,000. The other, which is of 
brick, was built in 1832-3, by the brothers Phincas, Joseph, and Isaac 
Davis, Esqs., at a cost of $30,300, (including four houses and land.) 
It remained in the possession of members of that family till the death 
of the last survivor, Isaac Davis, Esq., in 1859. Both factories are 
now in the possession of the Messrs. Pratt, of Grafton. 



296 

The manufacture of combs was introduced into this place by Haynes 
& Bush, about the year 1839, and is still carried on, to a considerable 
extent, by the Brothers Wilder & Warren, T. Bush, Milo Hildreth & 
Brothers, and several other firms or individuals. 

The tanning business, also, is prosecuted to some extent in this 
town. It was commenced in the midst of the Revolutionary war, 
about 1778, by Deacon Isaac Davis, father of Gov. John Davis, con- 
tinued by his sons, Isaac and Joseph Davis, Esqrs., and is now owned 
and carried on by his grandson, George C. Davis, Esq. 

The Agi'icultural Railroad, which at present terminates in this vil- 
lage, furnishes an easy communication with the market ; and, when 
completed, Avill form a desirable connection with the northern and 
north-western routes. 

Settlement, Population, S^c. 

Some time previous to the close of the seventeenth century, some 
parts of the territory now included within the limits of Northborough 
had been laid out for farms. The first settler, according to tradition, 
was John Brigham, from Sudbury, to whom a grant of land was made 
in 1672, on " Licor Meadow Plain," as stated in the deed, and which 
Ave may suppose covered a tract of nearly level ground, extending 
north from the foot of Liquor Hill, or Mount Assabet, so as to include 
the site of the saw-mill, which he soon afterwards erected, and of the 
log-cabin which he built, near where the saw-mill of Wilder Bush now 
stands. Other grants of land Avere made in the same year ; one to 
Samixel Goodenow, and another to John Rediat, " on the Nepmuck 
road that formerly led- toward Coneticoat," both of which were proba- 
bly within the bounds of this town. 

At the time of the division of Westborough into two precincts, or 
parishes, that is, in 1744, the north precinct contained thirty-eight 
families. After the separation, measures Avere at once adopted by the 
inhabitants of the north precinct to build a meeting-house and to settle 
a minister. After much controversy respecting a location, the ques- 
tion was submitted to referees, Avho fixed on a spot a little to the Avest 
of that noAV occupied by the old meeting-house belonging to the First 
parish. The land on which it stands Avas given to the toAvn by Capt. 
James Eager, April 26, 1745, for the use of the inhabitants, "so 
long," the deed runs, " as the said inhabitants of the north precinct 
shall improve said land for the standing of a meeting-house for the 
public worship of God." 

Before the separation, the inhabitants of the Avhole district, compris- 
ing both toAvns, at first called " Chauncy," or " Chauncy Village," 
worshiped together in the old meeting-house, which stood near Wes- 
son's tavern, now the Water-Cure establishment. 



297 

Northborough became an incorporated District, January 24, 1766 ; 
till which time its inhabitants continued to exercise their rights as 
citizens of Westborough, receiving their share of the appropriations 
made for the support of schools, for repairing the highways, &c. 

From the date of its incorporation to the commencement of the 
Revolutionary war, in 1775, when, as above-mentioned, it assumed 
the rank of a town, Northborough exercised all the rights and enjoyed 
all the privileges secured to other towns, excepting the privilege of 
sending a delegate or representative to the "Great and General 
Court," in this case voting with Westborough. It raised money for 
the maintenance of public worship, for the support of schools, for 
repairs on the highways, «&;c., and was not backward in furnishing 
men to join the several expeditions, undertaken by the Government of 
England, for the conquest of Canada. 

Three men joined the expedition to Halifax in 1754; two were at 
Crown Point in 1755 ; and in 1758, eight young men from this small 
district were with the army under Gen. Abercrombie, at his defeat 
before Ticonderoga, one of whom, Capt. Timothy Brigham, Avho lived 
till October 5, 1828, to the advanced age of ninety-three, Avas second 
in command under Capt, Samuel Wood of this town, (who died Sep- 
tember 21, 1818, at the age of seventy-five,) of the company of Minute 
Men, whicli marched down to Cambridge on the memorable li)th of 
April, 1775, and Avhich took part in the battle of Bunker Hill, on the 
17th of June following, when Capt. Wood received a slight wound on 
the retreat of the American troops. The wound, though in the back, 
was not regarded as a dishonorable one ; nor was it of so serious a 
nature as to prevent the brave captain from attending public worship 
the following Sunday, in his native village, with the rent in his coat 
unrepaired. 

The inhabitants of this precinct took an early and decided stand in 
defense of their rights in the controversy with the mother country, 
which preceded the breaking out of hostilities in 1775. As early as 
March, 1773, at a meeting of the citizens called for the purpose of con- 
sulting together on public affairs, it was " Voted, as the opinion of tliis 
district, that it is the indispensable duty of all men, and all bodies of 
men, to unite and strenuously oppose, by all lawful ways and means, 
such unjust and unrighteous encroachments, made or attempted to be 
made, upon their just rights ; and that it is our duty earnestly to 
endeavor to hand these rights down inviolate to our posterity, as they 
were handed to us by our worthy ancestors." 

The folloAving communication appears in the Massachusetts Gazette 
for February 17, 1773 : " We hear from Shrewsbury, that, one day 
last week, a peddler was observed to go into a tavern there, with a bag 
containing about 30 pounds of Tea. Information of which being had 



298 

at Northborough, about 5 miles distance, a Number of Indians went 
from the Great Swamp, or thereabouts, seized upon it, and committed 
it to the flames, in the road facing said Tavern, where it was entirely 
consumed." This was the same year that the tea was thrown over- 
board in Boston harbor, by a band of young men disguised as 
Indians. 

In 1774, the District passed the following patriotic vote : " That we 
are determined to defend our Charter rights and privileges, at the risk 
of our lives and fortunes, and that the town desire the Committee of 
Correspondence to write to their brethren in Boston and inform them 
thereof." Again, June 3, 1776, a month before the Declaration of 
Independence was signed at Philadelphia, it was resolved: " That it 
is the mind of this town to be independent of Great Britain, in case 
the Continental Congress think proper : and that Ave are ready, with 
our lives and fortunes, if in Providence called, to defend the same." 

Nor did these spirited resolutions end in idle words. At one time, 
five, soon after, three, at another time, five, at another, seven, and on 
one occasion, seventeen men were called for from this small town, and 
were marched hundreds of miles, to mingle in the scenes of war. 

Nor was this all. Taking into consideration the hardships under- 
gone by those who had entered into the service of their country, and 
especially the losses they had sustained by being paid in a depreciated 
currency, the town voted, December 28, 1780, in the midst of that 
winter of unprecedented severity, to raise their quota of men, (eight in 
all, to serve three years,) and to pay and clothe them at their own ex- 
pense^ allowing them forty shillings each a month, in hard money, in 
addition to their clothes. 

The number was very small of those who refused to embark in the 
cause of freedom ; the names of four only being recorded as absentees, 
whose estates were confiscated near the close of the war. And al- 
though the people were reduced to the greatest straits, owing to the 
depi'eciation of the currency, the want of a circulating medium, and 
the embarrassments of debt, yet almost all proved loyal in the trying 
times that followed. Only four of the citizens of this town Avere im- 
plicated in the Shays Rebellion, as it was called, which had its head- 
quarters in the western part of Worcester County, and which had its 
origin in these very grievances. 

More prosperous times followed the adoption of the Federal Consti- 
tution, and Northborough shared with other towns in the general 
prosperity. 

Churches, Ministers, Sfc. 

Soon after Northborough had become a separate precinct, viz., in 
the Avinter of 1745, measures Avere taken for building a meeting-house, 



299 

with a view to the permanent establishment of public worship. The 
first meeting-house Avas built the same year; and on the 21st of May, 
1776, O. S., answering to June 1st, Rev. John Martyn was ordained 
as the minister. Mr. Martyn was an able and faithful pastor ; and 
during his ministry of nearly twenty-one years, Avas highly esteemed 
by his people, and by his brethren in the ministry. He died, after a 
short sickness, April 30, 1767, in the sixty-first year of his age. lie 
was a native of Boston, and a graduate of Harvard College of the 
year 1724. 

Rabbi Judah Monis, a converted Jew, for forty years Hebrew 
Instructor in Harvard College, and Avho had married a sister of Mrs. 
Martyn, of the name of MeiTit, after the death of his wife in 1761, 
came to live with his brother-in-law, Mr. Martyn, where he remained 
till his death, April 25, 1764, at the age of eighty-one. 

By his will, among other bequests, he left a legacy of one hundred 
and twenty-six pounds, as a fund, the interest of which Avas to be de- 
voted to the relief of indigent AvidoAvs of deceased clergymen, appoint- 
ing trustees for apportioning it; Avho, Avith their successors, have ful- 
filled the trust. The fund noAv amounts to four hundred dollars. He 
also gave a silver cup and a large silver tankard, since converted into 
tAvo cups, inscribed Avith his name, for the communion table. 

The grave of Rabbi Judah Monis is near that of his brother-in-laAV, 
Rev. Mr. Martyn, in the old burying-ground, and both are marked 
by monuments, Avith appropriate inscriptions. 

On the fourth of the foIloAving November, (1767,) six months only 
after the death of Mr. Martyn, Rev. Peter Whitney, son of Rev. Aaron 
"Whitney, of Petersham, Avas ordained as his successor. Mr. Whitney 
Avas graduated at Harvard College in 1762, and Avas married to Julia 
Lambert, of Reading, by Avhom he had ten children, Avho lived to the 
age of maturity. Mr. Whitney's ministry Avas long, peaceful and 
prosperous, and terminated in his sudden death, February 29, 1816, 
in the seA'enty-second year of his life and the forty-ninth of his ministry. 

The present senior pastor of the church. Rev. Joseph Allen, Avas 
ordained October 30th, 1816, at Avhose request, after a ministry of 
forty years, a colleague Avas given him, he still retaining his office. 
Rev. Trowbridge B. Forbush, a graduate of Meadville Theological 
School, the junior pastor, A\-as ordained January 1, 1857. 

The meeting-house of the First Congregational Society Avas erected 
in 1808, and remodeled in 1848. 

Two other ecclesiastical societies haA-e been formed in this tOAvn 
Avithin the last thirty-five years, viz., the Baptist Society, organized 
February 3, 1827; and the Evangelical Congregational Society, April 
3, 1832. Both are flourishing societies, and are fm-nished with hand- 



300 



some church edifices, erected, the former in 1860, and dedicated No- 
vember 28 ; that belonging to the Evangelical Congregational Society 
in 1847, and dedicated February 23, 1848. 

The first pastor of the Baptist church was Rev. Alonzo King. His 
successors were Edward Seagrave, William H. Dalrymple, Bartlett 
Pease, Artemas M. Piper, Tubal Wakefield, and Charles Farrar. The 
present incumbent. Rev. Silas Ripley, entered on his pastorate in 
May, 1855. 

The pastors of the Evangelical Congregational Church were : — 1. 
Samuel Austin Fay, ordained October 17, 1832 ; dismissed October 
19, 1836. 2. Daniel H. Emerson, ordained October 19, 1836; dis- 
missed April 23, 1840. 3. William A. Hovighton, ordained July 5, 
1843; dismissed June 11, 1851. 4. Samuel S. Ashley, installed 
June 16, 1852. 

From March 1841 to December 1842, the pulpit was statedly sup- 
plied by Rev. Dr. Bates, formerly President of Middlebury College, 
Vermont. 

Schools, Lyceums, Libraries, ^c. 

Four years after the act of incorporation, that is, in 1770, the town 
was divided into four squadrons, as they were called ; and ten years 
afterwards, or in 1780, a grant was made of £4,000, in a very depre- 
ciated currency, amounting to only $175, Avhich was increased by sub- 
sequent grant to about $545, for building four school-houses ; about 
$136 for each. 

The number of school-districts at present is six, in which schools 
are kept, on an average, six months in the year ; the Centre School 
having two departments, each furnished with a separate teacher. For 
the support of these schools the town makes an annual appropriation 
of from $1,200 to $1,300. The wages of male teachers are from $40 
to $50 a month, including board, Avhile the wages of female teachers 
are from $20 to $25. 

All the school-houses but one are of brick ; the one in the centre is 
of two stories, and furnished with a bell ; and all are of modern con- 
struction, and in tolerably good repair. The cost of the five brick 
school-houses was about $7,000. 

The first school committee was chosen April, 1826, agreeably to 
an enactment of the Legislature, passed March 4th, the same year ; 
before which time the minister and the selectmen were the visitors 
and superintendents of the schools. The preceding year, 1825, this 
town chose a Committee of seven members, " on uniformity of school 
books," which committee, in May of the same year, made their report, 
recommending a list of class books to be used in all the schools in town, 



301 

to the exclusion of all others, which report was accepted, and a great 
and growing evil Avas thereby corrected. From this period, (182G,) 
more than ten years before the Board of Education was established, 
the school committee made a report to the town, each year, of their 
doings, and of the state of the schools, copies of which are contained 
in the to^Nii records. 

In 1830, the town voted to introduce Ilolbrook's School Apparatus, 
which accordingly was done ; the articles were manufactured by Capt. 
Thomas "W". Lyon, an ingenious machinist of this town. Two years 
earlier, 1828, the town adopted a system of regulations, which was 
published for the use of the teachers, and which, with some modifica- 
tions, is still in force. 

FewtoAvns in this Commonwealth, it is believed, in proportion to their 
size, have furnished a larger number of teachers during the last half 
century than this. A friend has furnished us with a list, containing 
the names of fifty-seven teachers, male and female, whose education 
was obtained principally in our public schools, who found employment 
as teachers in this and other places, during the first thirty years of the 
present century. During the last thirty years, the number must have 
been much larger, as more than thirty have graduated at our Normal 
Schools, most of them at the one in Bridgewater. Many of them have 
found employment in various parts of the country. Some of the teach- 
ers who have gone from this town, have continued in the emplopnent 
for thirty or forty years, and some are still in active service. Several 
attempts have been made to establish a permanent High School in this 
place, but hitherto without success. That institution, so much needed, 
and so earnestly desired by many, is yet in the future, but cannot, we 
think, long be delayed. 

Although this is a reading community, there is no large public 
library in town, the people depending on parish, or private libraries, or 
book clubs. A juvenile library, afterwards converted into a Sunday 
school library, Avas formed in 1824, replenished by an annual contri- 
bution, and Avliich for many years furnished reading for all the children 
in town, who chose to apply for them. Sunday school libraries are now 
connected with the several parishes, or religious societies. 

Libraries for young women and for young men have been instituted, 
and have flourished for many years ; but, as the proprietors became 
scattered, the libraries went to decay, and have ceased to exist. A 
free public library, supported by the town, in accordance with a statute 
of the CommonAvealth, passed May, 1851, Avould be a great public 
benefit, and is " a consummation devoutly to be wished." The ben- 
efits of such an institution Avill be realized in " the good time coming." 
A " Social Library " was instituted as early as 1792, and was main- 
39 



302 

tained till its incorporation with the Free Library of the First Parish, 
in 1828. 

A Lyceum was established in 1828, which, after continuing in active 
operation for about thirty years, gave place to the " Young Men's 
Lyceum," which flourished for a few years, and was then suffered to 
die out. A Course of Lectures has been given in the Town Hall each 
season since the winter of 1826-7, till 1860-1, a period of thirty-four 
years. For many years the lecture was followed by a discussion, 
or debate, on some subject previously assigned. 

The population of the town, fifty years ago, was less than 800. It 
has more tlian doubled since, though the increase during the last ten 
years has been quite inconsiderable. Li 1850, it was 1,535 ; in 1860, 
1,563. The increase in wealth, during the same period of ten years, 
has been much gi-eater in proportion to the number of inhabitants. In 
1850, the valuation was $625,596 : in 1860, it amounted to S947,539, 
being an increase of nearly $322,000. 

The Agricultural Branch Railroad, which has its present terminus 
in Northborough, was finished in 1855. The Northborough Bank was 
incorporated in 1854, Avith a capital of $100,000 : of this institution, 
George C. Davis, Esq., is President, and Abraham W. Seaver, 
Cashier. 

In 1831, the town, by a unanimous vote passed March 7th, ac- 
cepted a munificent donation of $3,000 from Henry Gassett, Esq., a 
merchant of Boston, but a native of this town. This is an accumu- 
lating fund, one-sixth of the interest of which, after reaching the sum 
of $4,000, is to be annually added to the principal, and the other five- 
sixths to be applied to the support of the minister, for the time being, 
of the First Congregational Society, so long as such Society should 
exist, and " maintain a good and convenient house for public worship 
on or near the spot where the present meeting-house stands." Mr. 
Gassett died in Boston, August 15, 1855, at the age of eighty-three. 

The Town Hall was built in 1822, and a basement story added for 
a Vestry in 1833. The town clock Avas a present from the late Jonas 
Ball, a short time before his death, in 1847. 



GENEALOGICAL SKETCH 



EARLY FAMILIES IN MARLBOROUGH, 



INTRODUCTION. 

In the folloAving notices of the Marlborough Families, I have con- 
fined myself mainly to those who were in the place before 1800. I 
have endeavored to begin as far back as my means of information 
would allow, and to trace the line of descent to the family or indi- 
vidual who came to Marlbox'ough ; and while he or they remained in 
town, I have endeavored to embrace in the list every member of the 
family. When any individual or family left town, I have dropped 
the genealogy — though I have noted all important historical events 
connected with the individual or family, known to me, as far as they 
fell within the scope of this sketch. 

It has not been my purpose to bring the genealogy down to the 
present time, but only to a period where any person who has any de- 
sire to do so, can take up the inquiry and pursue his own family to the 
present day. Every one acquainted with genealogical research, knows 
that it Avould the Avork of a lifetime, to give a full and complete gene- 
alogy of all the families in all their branches, of such a toA\Ti as Marl- 
borough, covering, as it does, two centuries, and embracing a territory 
Avhich now comprises four distinct tOAvns. Besides, Marlborough, dur- 
ing one century of her history, has been like a lodge in the wilderness, 
where the pilgrims have merely tarried for a short time, to rest and 
refresh themselves on their journey to more distant lands. It has 
been one of those nurseries which liave reared up troops of emigrants 
to people other and more remote regions. Under these circumstances 
I have been constrained to confine myself to the famiUes resident 
within the town, and to stop short of the present day. But though 
1800 has been the point at Avhich I have proposed to close the tables 
of the families, I have found it impossible to confine myself to any 



304 

exact period. Some large families extend over a period of twenty or 
twenty-five years ; and when they commenced before 1800, I have 
not felt at liberty to stop in the midst of a family ; and when I have 
given the birth, I have, where information was at hand, given the 
marriage, and sometimes the death. I have, in fact, felt the tempta- 
tion strong to use the facts I possessed, and to overrun rather than 
stop short of my prescribed limits. Some may regret that the gen- 
ealogy had not been brought down to the present time. But this 
would have increased the labor one hundred per cent, and have made 
the volume unreasonably large. 

Wliile I have endeavored to be accurate, I have not the vanity to 
suppose that I have escaped all errors. Every one Avho has had any 
experience in such labors, knows that errors are unavoidable. The 
negligence of the most careful parents, in having the births, deaths, and 
marriages in their respective families recorded, renders it impossible, 
from the tOAvn records, to give accurate lists of the families. The dif- 
ficulty is greatly heightened by the fact, that the Christian names in 
early times were so few in number, that almost every family, in its 
different branches, had two or three Williams, or Samuels, or Johns, 
or Davids, or Marys, or Sarahs, or Abigails, or Elizabeths ; so that, if 
we find a record that John Rice married Mary Howe, Ave are in doubt 
which John or which Mary it is who has entered the bands of wed- 
lock, especially as we find at least two of a marriageable age at that 
period. The same difficulties arise in obituary notices. Most of the 
records give simply the name and date of the death, without any age 
or other designation, leaving it uncertain whether it is the mother or 
daughter, or a cousin of that name ; or whether it is John 1st, 2d, or 
3d. In all such doubtful cases, I have, as far as practicable, sought 
other evidence, and in most cases have been enabled to arrive at rea- 
sonable certainty. 

If, under the circumstances, I have made some forced or unnatural 
marriages, the parties or their friends may console themselves Avith the 
reflection that they can separate without the trouble or delicacy of a 
divorce. And if I have prematurely consigned some to the shades, 
they are at liberty to live on, as though nothing had happened. 

A person of no experience in these matters, is not aware of the defects 
and omissions in the records. I have frequently, from the records in 
the Probate office, been enabled to add two or three children to a fam- 
ily, and correct many other mistakes. Some of the early records of 
marriages omit the family name of the wife altogether — the record 
being simply that such a man and his wife Mary, or Sarah, were mar- 
ried on such a day, month, and year, I mention these embarrassments, 
because it is the fate of every genealogist to be censured and pro- 



305 

nounced unreliable, especially by those who kiiOAv little or nothing of 
the amount of labor required, and the difficulties to "be encountered. 

You may trace a family from the first emigrant down to the present 
day, — you may give them a vast amount of information concerning 
their ancestors and descent, of which they knew nothing before ; but 
if you happen to omit one darling child, solely in consequence of the 
neglect of the parents in not having the birth recorded, your labors 
will be condemned, and your accuracy will be called in question. 
Or you may copy accurately from the public record, and if tlie date 
docs not correspond Avith the family record, or the date u])on the 
grave-stone, you may expect to be held personally responsible for the 
discrepancy. All that the genealogist can expect, is to be censured 
by many he has labored to serve, and to be made the scape-goat to 
bear away the carelessness of the clerk, and the neglect of parents 
and friends. He may, after all his labor and care, be left to realize, 
in some degree, the truth of the poet's couplet : 

"Truths would you teach, or save a sinking land; 
All fear, none aid you, and few understand." 

I regret that the accounts I have given of some families are so 
meagre and imperfect ; but the defect is chargeable to the record and 
not to me. Nor have I been able from other records to supjjly, in 
many cases, the defects. What I have given is the fruit of nuicli 
labor, study and anxiety. I have carefully examined the Records of 
Marlborough, and several other towns. I have availed myself of all 
genealogies which have been published, that were supposed to have 
any connection Avith the Marlborough families. Particularly am I 
indebted to Ward's History of Shrewsbury, and to his Ward and 
Rice Families ; to Morse's Brigham Family, and to Barry's History 
of Fi'amingham ; and to Mrs. Williams's Births, Deaths, and Mai*- 
riages in Marlborough. 

I liave in all cases rejected the double dating between the 1st of 
January and the 2oth of March, and made the year commence with 
the first of January. This may be regarded by some antiquaries as 
imwise. But from a pretty full consideration of the subject, I am 
satisfied that the system of double dating, in a work of this nature, is 
more productive of error than of accuracy. And though most gene- 
alogists have adopted it, I have never yet seen a work of any magni- 
tude, where the system was fully adhered to ; but in very many cases 
the day and month have been omitted, and the year only set down, 
obviously for no other reason than to avoid this question of double 
dating. I have therefore commenced the year with the first of Jan- 
uary, rather than perplex the reader with this vexed subject. 



306 

The following explanation will enable the reader to understand the 
genealogical tables of families: 

AbkeViations. — b. stands for born; bap. for baptized; m, ior married; d. for 
died; unm. for unmarried; dau. for daughter or daughters; wid. for widow; 
r. for resided or resides. Several towns will be found in an abbreviated form, 
as Marl, for Marlborough; Sud. for Sudbury; North, for Northborough ; West. 
for Westborough ; South, for Soutkborough ; Wat. for Watertown, &c. All towns 
are understood as being in Massachusetts, unless otherwise designated* 

In the following tables the parents' names are given in full, and are 
printed in small capitals ; and the children's Christian name alone is 
given, and is printed in italics. Children are separated from parents 

by a short line or rule, thus : . And different families or 

branches of families by a long rule, thus : 

The right hand column of figures in the left margin of the page 
denotes the number of persons consecutively, from the first named to 
the last of the family. The first male mentioned under each general 
head, or new family, is set down as 1, and his children as 2, 3, 4, 5, 
&c., and so on, consecutively, through every branch of the family ; 
and the number set against any person is to be considered as his or 
her number ; and no one is ever brought forward again but in con- 
nection with that number. Whenever the children are first named in 
the series, the number of the father is brought down against the 
children, and placed at the left hand, separated by a hyphen, thus : 
1-2 or 13-29 ; the left hand figures denoting the father, and the right 
hand figures, the children — the father's number being understood as 
applying to each of his children. AVhenever an obelisk (t) is pre- 
fixed to a name, it denotes that the person Avill be taken up again ; 
and the place where he is thus treated of may be found by following 
down the left margin of the page, tiU you find his number standing 
one place to the left, and the number of his father one place to the 
left of that, expressed thus : 1-2- or 13-29-. The numbers Avill of 
course vary with the position of the person in the table. 

That the above explanation may be fully understood, I will illus- 
trate it by its application to a family. Take the Bigelow Family, 
commencing at page 325, as an example* 

John Bigelow, the first immigrant, stands as No. 1. Against that 
number, his personal history is given. He is separated from his 
children by a short rule or line. His number (1) is brought down 
aaainst the name of John, his first child mentioned. John is num- 
bered 2, Jonathan, 3, and so on to James, who is numbered 7. No. 
1, the number of the father, is understood as standing against the 
names or numbers of all his children. By inspecting the family, 



307 

it ■will be seen that an obelisk is prefixed to the name of Samuel, 
whose consecutive number is 5, with that of his father (No. 1) stand- 
ing above, to represent that Samuel is a child of John. This obelisk 
denotes that Samuel, the child, will be taken up again, when he will 
appear as a father, Avith his whole name printed in small capitals. To 
find where he is thus treated of, follow down the left margin of the 
page till you come to 1-5- the appropriate numbers of Samuel and 
his father. Here his personal history is given, and he is separated 
from his children by a short line. 

His number (5) is brought down against his children, who are num- 
bered 8, 9, 10, and so on to 17. By a glance at the family, it will be 
seen that John, Samuel, and Thomas, represented by 8, 10, and 12, 
respectively, are to be taken up again, as the obelisk is prefixed to 
each of their names. Thomas, for example, whose number is 12, in 
connection Avith his father, whose number is 5, is expressed 5-1 2-. 
To find the place where he is further treated of, follow down the left 
margin of the page, till you find these numbers standing against each 
other, where Thomas is described, and is followed by his children, 
denoted by figures expressive of their order in the scries of numbers 
and names. 

The same general direction will apply in all other cases. 

To show the perfection of this scheme, each individual can be traced 
backward, thus : Take Charles D. as an examj)le, numbered 120. It 
will be seen that he is the son of 66 ; by following back, it Avill appear 
that 66 represents Gershom, the son of 46 (Ivory), who is the son of 
25 (Gershom), who is the son of 8 (John), who is the son of 5 (Sam- 
uel), Avho is the son of 1, representing John, the first emigrant. 

In this manner each individual can be traced backward through his 
ancestors, or forward through his posterity. 

It will also be seen that each separate family, under each general 
division or name, comprised within the long lines, presents at one 
view tlu'ee generations, the grandfather, father, and children. Thus 
the family of Thomas Bigclow, separated by long lines from that of 
Samuel, which precedes, and that of Gershom, Avhich follows, presents 
one generation in the children, numbered from 38 to 44, both inclu- 
sive ; another in the father, numbered 12 ; and another in the grand- 
father, numbered 5. 

I have been thus particular, because there is a general complaint 
among common readers, that genealogical tables are unintelligible ; 
and I had rather be accused of repetition, than not be understood. 

The system I have adopted, though differing from that of most 
genealogists, is believed to be on the whole the most simple, and the 
easiest understood. 



GENEALOGY. 



1- 2 
3 

4 
5 
6 

7 



1-3- 



ADAMS. — Benjamin Adams was in Marlborough in the early part 
of the 18th century. By his wife Persis, he had Persia, b. 1732, d. 
1782; Silas, b. Nov. 18, 1733, d. 173G; Rebecca, b. 1736. 



Jonas Adams, by his wife Sarah, had Jacob, b. December 2, 1771 ; 
Dorcas, b. 1774 : Sai-ah, b. 1777 ; Joel, b. 1779 ; John, b. 1782 ; Samuel, 
b. 1784; Lucy, b. 1785; Polly, b. 1788. 



ALCOCKE. — John Alcocke, b. in England, 1627, m. Sarah 
Palsgrave. He was son of Dea. George Alcocke, of Roxbury, who 
was Representative to the first General Court, May 14, 1634. John, 
grad. II. Coll. 1646; he resided in Roxbury, was a physician, and 
was often employed by the Colony in public service, such as survey- 
ing and locating grants of land. For his public services, he had a 
grant of a thousand acres of land, now included in Marl, and known 
as " The Farm." He had other grants of land in different places. 



ALEXANDER. — Thomas Alexander, by wife Phebe, had Jonas' 
b. March 8, 1749; Jeduthan, b. Sept. 5, 1751, m. 1774, Gate Smith, 
and had Jeduthan, b. 1775 ; Phebe, b. Sept. 22, 1753 ; Jabez, b. Aug. 
22, 1755, moved to Henniker, N. H. 



ALLEN. — Stephen Allen, by wife, Catharine Weeks, had Jlnne 
b. 1779; Moses, b. Dec. 14, 1781 ; Betsey, b. 1784; Benjamin IV., b. 
Oct. 27, 1786; Lucy, b. 1788; Catey, b. 1792. — William Allen, by 
wife, Sarah Joslin, had Anna, b. 1792 ; William C, b. Jan. 1, 1793, 
m. 1819, Elizabeth Loring. 



THE AMSDEN FAMILY. 

Isaac Amsden, son of Isaac Amsden, of Cambridge, was b. 1656. 
He was a proprietor of the Ockoocangaiisett purchase in 1684. He 
was in Marl, some years previous, and m. Jane Rutter, of Sudbury ; 
she d. his widow, Nov. 22, 1739. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 2, 1677 ; m. June 3, 1697, Josiah Reed. 
jlsaac, b. Aug. 29, 1680 ; m. July 24, 1705, Zipporah Beaman. 
jJo/i?i, b. Dec. 28, 1683 ; m. Hannah. 

\Thomas, b. Jan. 9, 1685 ; m. June 18, 1712, Eunice Howe. 
Jacob, b. Feb. 29, 1689 ; m. Oct. 28, 1719, Sarah Beaman. 
^Abraham, b. Oct. 15, 1692 ; m. Nov. 29, 1722, Hannah Newton. 



Isaac Amsden in. July 24, 1705, 1st, Zipporah Beaman. She d- 
Nov. 9, 1716, and he m. 2d, May 23, 1718, Mary Martin. She d- 
March 25, 1719, and he m. 3d, 1725, Hannah Francis, of Medford. 



309 



He was a citizen of Bome prominence, and held his Majesty's Com- 
mission as Captain, He d. May 3, 1727, aged 47. His house waa 
one of the sfarrisonod houses in 1711. 



Thankful, b. Nov. 14, 170n. 
Zipporah, b. Oct. 11, 1726. 



9 Elizahdh, b. March 13, 1709. 



John Amsden m. Hannah 
1773. 



She d. his widow, Oct. 9, 



4-11 Amitij, b. Oct. 9, 1704 ; m. 1727, Jacob Wheeler. 
12 Unity, b. Dec. 27, 1705 ; m. 1730, Joseph Wetherby 



Uriah, b. Feb. 10, 1708, d. 1708. 
Jonathan, b. Jan. 31, 1710. 
John, b. Nov. 9, 1714. 
Persis, b. April 21, 1720. 
Aaron, b. June 2, 1724. 



14 Zeruiah, b. April 24, 1709. 
16 Ephraim, b. Jan. 3, 1713. 
18 Hannah, b. June 4, 1717. 
20 Isaac, b. Jan. 10, 1722. 
22 David, b. Sept. 23, 172G. 



Thomas Amsden m. June 18, 1712, Eunice Howe, dau. of Joseph 
and Dorothy. Like his brother Isaac, he commanded a military 
company, when that honor was conferred upon the substantial men 
of the town only. He d. April 27, 1760, aged 75. She d. Oct. 20, 
1725. 

Lua/, b. April 18, 1713; m. Feb. 13, 1732, Benjamin Howe. 

Joseph, b. April 15, 1716 ; d. March 30, 1737. 

Eunice, b. July 27, 1720 ; m. Oct. 14, 1746, Jeremiah Robinson. 



Abraham Amsden m. I^ov. 29, 1722, Hannah Newton. He d. 
March 7, 1763, aged 73. 

Abraham, b. Aug. 29, 1723; m. 1st, Hannah Whitcomb, Feb. 13, 
1746, and m. 2d, Submit Morse, and had Levi, b. May 22, 1744. 

Uriah, b. July 19, 1725 ; m. Abigail, and had Joseph, b. April 20, 
1749, m. 1771, Mary Edward; Benjamin, b. Nov. 24, 1751; m. 
1773, Mrs. Hannah Morse ; and Joel, b. June 18, 1755. [1758. 

Jacob, b. May 28, 1728. 29 Bezaleel, b. March 13, 1731, d. 

Francis, b. Dec. 4, 1734. 31 Hannah, b. Ap. 13, 1739. 



ANGIER. — Benjamin Angier, by wife Sarah, had in Marl. Ben- 
jamin, b. 1735, and Silas, b. 1737. He had Sarah, Mary, Timothy, 
John, and Sarah, h. in Framingham. 



THE ARNOLD FAMILY. 

Joseph Arnold came into Marl, in 1762, to reside with Mary 

Sherman, wid. of John Sherman. He m. about that time Lydia . 

She d. 1776, and he m. Persis, who d. Feb. 20, 1825, aged 84. He 
d. Nov. 15, 1796. 

Joseph, b. Aug. 25, 1763; m. Feb. 1, 1786, Molly Barnes. 
^JVilliam, b. Oct. 27, 1765 ; m. Jan. 1790, Polly Rice, of Framingham. 
Lydia, b. Aug. 4, 1767 ; d. young. 

riebecca, b. Sept. 20, 1768; m. Oct. 9, 1793, Daniel Darling. 
]fFinslow, b, July 16, 1770 ; m. Abigail Hager. 
40 



310 



9 
10 
11 
12 



1-3- 



3-13 
14 
15 
16 
17 



18 



1-6- 



6-19 
20 
21 



1-7- 



7-22 
23 
24 
25 

26 
27 



1- 2 

3 

4 



1-3- 



3- 6 

7 

8 

9 

10 



\John, b. Sept. 15, 1771 ; m. July 22, 1793, Rachel Hill. 

.^nna, b. July 18, 1773. 

Lydia, b. April 11, 1774; m. March 27, 1796, Silas Temple. 

Molly, b. Feb. 16, 1778 ; m. 1798, Ephraim Bigelow. 

Levi, b. Sept. 13, 1779; m. Nov. 27, 1800, Miriam Bigelow. 

Jiaron, b. Oct. 10, 1781 ; m. Sept. 9, 1804, Sarah Tainter ; d. 1832. 



William Arnold m. 1790, Polly Rice, of Framingham ; she d. 
1795, and he m. 2d, Jan. 3, 1797, Relief Rice, who d. Nov. 11, 1811, 
and he m. 3d, April 23, 1812, Susunna Gates. He d. Oct. 12, 1828, 
aged 64. Wid. Susanna d. May 7, 1845. 

Willard, b. Feb. 2, 1791 ; m. 1817, Elmira Johnson. 

Stephen H., b. Dec. 11, 1792; d. Feb. 23, 1815. 

Polly Rice, b. Sept. 26, 1795 ; m. April 18, 1832, Zenas Johnson. 

Jackson, b. July 6, 1797 ; m. Oct. 29, 1823, Lucy Barnes. 

Winthrop, b. July 17, 1801 ; m. Oct. 10, 1825, Sophia Barnes, who d. 

1833. 
Caroline, b. Aug. 24, 1807 ; m. June 24, 1830, Martin Howe. 



WiNSLOw Arnold m. Abigail Hager, Aug. 17, 1791, dau. of 
Ebenezer and Abigail (Stow) Hager. 

Joel, b. Dec. 20, 1791 ; m. Nov. 12, 1816, Ruth Parminter. 
Samuel, b. May 10, 1794 ; m. March 3, 1822, Betsey Wood. 
Sally, b. March 30, 1797 ; d. Dec. 22, 1832. 



John Arnold m. July 22, 1793, Rachel Hill. She d. May 18, 
1829. 



John Hills, b. Aug. 29, 1794; d. Oct. 12, 1823. 

Prudence Hills, b. Aug. 24, 1798 ; m. Nov. 23, 1820, William Dunton. 

Stephen JV., b. Nov. 9, 1802. 

Mary A., b. Feb. 8, 1804 ; m. 1-828, Eli Huntington. 

Pierpont A'., b. Feb. 15, 1809. 

JVilliam H., b. Aug. 17, 1812. 



THEAXTELL FAMILY. 

Henry Axtell was one of the proprietors of Marl, at the time 
of its incorporation, in 1660, and drew his land in the first division. 

He m. June 14, 1665, Hannah . He was slain by the Indians, 

between Sudbury and Marl., April 20, 1676. 



Mary, b. Aug. 8, 1670; m. May 24, 1698, Zachariah Newton. 
\Thomns, b. Aug. 8, 1672; m. Nov. 2, 1697, Sarah Barker. 
Daniel, b. Nov. 4, 1673. 5 Sarah, b. Sept. 28, 1675. 



Thomas Axtell m. Nov. 2, 1697, Sarah Barker, of Concord. 



TJiomas, b. Aug. 19, 1698 ; d. Dec. 22, 1698. 

Sarah, b. Feb. 16, 1703; m. Feb. 7, 1721, Josiah Hayden. 

\Joseph, b. Aug. 1, 1705; m. Abigail Hayden, 1730. 

Thomas, b. May 11, 1712; probably moved to Grafton. 

John, b. April 15, 1715. 11 Abigail, b. Oct. 8, 1717. 



311 



3-8- I JostPH AxTF.LL III. Fob. 4, IToO, Abigail HayJen, of Siulbury. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 7, 1730. 13 Manj, b. Jan. 18, 1732. 

Daniel, b. Jan. 14, 1734. 15 Mi^nil, b. Oct. 12, 1738. 

The Axtells have long been extinct in Marl. 



BADCOCK. — William Badcock, by wife Lucy, had Jfilliam, b. 
July, 1711, who in. Lydi,T, and had Li/dia, h. May '^3, 17:3i); IfiUinm, 
b. July 17, 1741 ; Man/, b. Oct. 31, 1743; Jonah, b. Dec, 11, 1745, d. 
young; Jonah, b. Dec. II, 1748; IjIicij, b. April 7, 1751. 

This name is now generally written Babcock, substituting h for d. 



THE BAKER FAMILY. 

Joseph Baker was in Marl, early in the 18th century, being one 
of the committee in 1710, to warn meetings of the proprietors of the 
Indian plantation. I sliall not attempt to trace his genealogy ; for 
next to the name of Smith, Baker is one of the most difficult. Almost 
every early settlement had one or more of this name. 

Joseph Baker, by his wife Elizabeth, had, as appears by the 
Record, the following children b. in Marl. She d. Feb. (I, 17(i3. He 
was probably son of Win. and Eliza., of Concord, and d. June 2, 1755. 



j Joseph, b. June 8, 1708, m. Esther Ilarwood. 

Elizabeth, b. March 28, 1711 ; m. Dec. 14, 1733, Robert Moulton. 

f Robert, ^ h Nov 24 1713 ^ '"' ^"^^^^^ 

Benjamin, I ^- ^^ov.^4, 171d, j ^ ^^^^^ g^.^ j^jg 

Mary, b. July 29, 1717. 

Sarah, b. Sept. 1, 1722; m. 1743, Obadiah Perry. 

Hannah, b. May 15, 1725 ; m. June 15, 1745, Richard Taylor. 



Joseph Baker in. Esther Ilarwood, of Dunstable, Aug. 26, 1724. 

Esther, b. May 21, 1725. 10 Ruth, b. Sept. 14, 172G. 

Edward, b. March 7, 1728 ; m. 1757, Patience Howe. 
Timothy, h. Feb. 3, 1730; d. March 20, J 785. 



Robert Baker, m. Lydia . They had a family of 15 children. 

Elizabeth, b. April 3, 1741. 14 Joseph, b. Sept. 8, 1742. 

Patience, b. Feb. 23, 1743 ; m. May 30, 1709, Nathan Wetherby. 

Ephraim, b. Nov. 7, 1745. 

Molly, b. Aug. 20, 1747; m. 1771, John Putnam. 

John, b. Aug. 3, 1749; m. 1783, Mary Hayden, of Sudbury. He 

was among the three years' men in the Revolution. 
Lydia, b. June 20, 1751 ; m. Feb. 13, 1772, Samuel Harris. 
Esther, b. April 19, 17.53 ; m. June 10, 1773, Nathan Mann. 
William, b. Feb. 10, 1755; d. Nov. 1, 17G0. 
Thomas, b. Dec. 31, 1756; m. Feb. 26, 1781, Sarah Temple. 
Silas, b. Dec. 23, 1758. He was in the three years' service in the army. 
Stephen, b. Oct. 18, 1760; m. Nov. 17, 1791, Prudence Phelps, Lan. 
Sarah, b. July 10, 1762; m. March 30, 1780, Ephr»im Stow. 
Hannah, b. Aug. 23, 17(>4; m. May 26, 1785, Bezaleel Hill. 
Rachel, b. Sept. 28, 1766; m. 1792, Stephen Osborn. 

The Bakers in Marl, since 1800, arc not, we suppose, connected 
witli the above family. 



312 



1- 2 
3 
4 
5 



1-2- 



2- 6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 
13 



2-6- 



6-14 
15 
16 
17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 



THE BANISTER FAMILY. 

Christopher Banister m. Jane, dau. of Thomas Goodnow, of 
Sudbury. He was one of the proprietors of Marl, in 1657, and signed 
the first order passed by the town after its incorporation. He re- 
ceived his share in the first division of lots in 1600, and the year 
following engaged with Obadiah Ward and Richard Barnes, to erect 
a frame for a house for Mr. Brimsmead, their minister. His house-lot 
was bounded on the east by the Indian planting field, on the north by 
the house-lot of John Barrett, and on the south by the house-lot of 
John Ruddocke. He d. March 30, 1678, aged about 42. 



fJohn, b. Aug. 13, 1670 ; m. Ruth Eager. 
Mary, b. Oct. 7, 1672. 

Joseph, b. May 2, 1675. He moved to Brookfield. 
Thomas, h. Feb. 21, 1677; grad. H. C. 1700; and d. 1712, at the 
island of Jamaica. 



John Banister m. Ruth Eager, Nov. 11, 1695 ; he d. July 19, 1730, 
aged 60. He was a Lieut. She was dau. of William and Ruth 
(Hill) Eager; d. Dec. 25, 1767, in the 90th year of her age. 



\John, b. — 29, 1696 ; m. Nov. 26, 1723, Abigail Barker. ' 

Ruth, b. Feb. 25, 1699 ; d. May 1, 1699. 

Mainj, b. April 18, 1700 ; m. Jan. 1, 1724, Ebenezer Taylor. 

Rui'h, b. Aug. 18, 1702 ; m. Feb. 1, 1722, Thomas Rich. 

Jane, b. June 3, 1705 ; m. Dec. 20, 1725, Nathaniel Hudson. 

Hvldah, b. Sept. 12, 1707; m. July 18, J727, Elisha Maynard, of 

Shrewsbury. 
Martha, b. Nov. 23, 1710; d. Sept. 10, 174L 
Sarah, b. March 23, 1713; m. Nov. 23, 1733, Jonas Holland ; d. 1738. 



John Banister m. Nov. 26, 1723, Abigail Barker, of Andover. 
She d. Aug. 19, 1727, and he m. Nov. 27, 1729, Martha Hay ward. 
Shed. Dec. 23, 1767, aged 65. He d. Oct. 22, 1779, aged 83. Like 
his father, he was a Lieut. 



John, b. Dec. 31, 1724 ; d. Jan. 18, 1725. 

Theodore, b. Feb. 16, 1726; d. March 6, 1731. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 15, 1727 ; d. Aug. 7, 1755, unin. 

Martha, b. Nov. 18, 1730 ; d. Nov. 18, 1730. 

Mary, b. May 9, 1733; d. Dec. 14, 1748. 

Zeruiah, b. Aug. 1, 1735 ; d. May 2, 1744. 

Ruth, b. July 28, 1737 ; m. Feb. 2, 1764, Nathan Park. 

Sarah, b. July 14, 1739; m. April 4, 1764, Moses Barnes. 

Mary, b. Dec. 11, 1743. 

Sophia, b. Feb. 7, 1747; m. Aug. 13, 1763, Ivory Bigelow. 



BARBER. — Ephraim Barber was in the six months' service from 
the town of Marl. 1775. He m. Oct. 11, 1781, Elizabeth Crosby, 
and ha^ JVilliam, b. Sept. 26, 1782; m. 1803, Polly Manson. Jona- 
than, b. Jan. 25, 1786 ; m. April 6, 1809, Achsah Howe. Elizabeth, 
b. Feb. 19, 1789 ; m. 1808, Nathaniel Hapgood. 

Ephraim Barber represented the town of Marl, in the General 
Court, 1810 and 1811. He d. Nov. 14, 1817, aged 70. 



313 



BARKER.— James Barker m. Oct. 13, 1790, Hatty Walknt, and 
had Betsey, b. 1791 ; Charlotte, b. 1793 ; IVilliam, b. Feb. 28, 1796. 



THE BARNARD FAMILY. 

Robert Barnakd was early in Andover, where he had a family. 

Stephen, b. 1649; m. Rebecca IIowc in 1G71. He d. in 1722, aged 
73. He had 4 sons. 



JVhthaniel, b. 

\Robert, b. May 29, 1689. 



4 James, b. 
6 Stephen, b. 



Robert Barnard m. in Andover, Sept. 14, 1710, Rebecca Osgood, 
b. 1692. She d. July 29, 1727, and he m. May 15, 1729, Elizabeth 
Bailey, of Lan. He d. May 13, 1773, aged 84 ; and she d. April 16, 
1776, aged 80. 

In 1723, Jeremiah Barstow, who was then in Marl, and was a large 
landholder, sold for £600 to Robert Barnard, said in the deed to be 
of Andover, a large tract of land, described in perhaps a dozen differ- 
ent lots, containing about 3^0 acres. These tracts, which appear to 
be adjoining, included the whole of the present village of Feltonville, 
on both sides of the river ; and were bounded easterly on the Indian 
line, and northerly by the Bush place and Lancaster (now Bolton) 
line, including the mill privilege, and the mill thereon, "together 
with the dwelling-house, and other housings, with the fencing, 
orcharding and gardens, belonging to said messuage, including the 
corn mill, with all accommodations and materials." 

It appears by this deed, that the mill erected before 1700, by Joseph 
Howe, Barstow's father-in-law, was then in full operation, and that 
there was a house, orchard and garden connected with it ; and Mr. 
Barstow is designated as a " miller." It further appears by the deed, 
that the neighborhood around was unsettled, as the tract is bounded 
on several sides by " common or undivided land." 

Robert Barnard probably catne to Marlborough soon after this pur- 
chase. He not only set up as a miller, but kept a public house. 



Martha, b. in Andover, ; d. Nov. 5, 1724. 
Rebecca, b. June 29, 1724 ; d. voung. 
Rebecca, b. Sept. 10, 172.5; d.Sept. 19, 1725. 
10 j Elizabeth, b. June 3, 1730 ; m. Silas Bayley. 



\Joel, b. July 14, 1732; m. June U'>, 17.')6, Lucy Stevens. 
Abigail, b. April 28, 1734 ; m. Sainuc^l Nurse. 
\Solomon, b. Dec. 27, 1735 ; m. April 27, 1762, Mary Priest. 
Martha, b. April 26, 1740 ; m. Nov. 23, 1758, Noah Howe. 
John, b. May 19, 1743 ; he was a physician, and resided in Sterling, 
where he had a numerous family. 



Joel Barnard m. June 16, 1756, Lucy Stevens, dau. of Simon 
and Lucy (Gove) Stevens, b. Nov. 8, 1733. He d. Aug. 15, 1775, 
aged 43. She d. Jan. 1, 1805, aged 72. He lived on the site where 
Col. Wood now resides, in Feltonville. 



Silas, b. Oct. 3, 1757 ; m. Phebe Russell, of Cambridge, and settled 
as a physician at Andover, N. H., where he d. 1794. 



314 



17 



18 

19 
20 
21 

22 
23 
24 



5-13- 



13-25 

26 
27 
28 
29 
30 

11-22- 



22-31 
32 

33 
34 
35 
30 
37 
38 



William, b. Jan. 31, 1759 ; m. April 23, 1783, Anna Wheeler. About 
1805, he moved to Dixtield, Me., and was drowned in the Andros- 
coggin river, while rifting logs. 

Lavinia, b. June 22, 1761 ; m. 1783, Daniel Stevens, being his third 
wife. 

Mary, ^ b M 28 17r-l- 5 '^" ^^"J- Stevens, of Roxbury, d. se 60. 

Elizabeth, ^ ' ' ' "* ' ^ m. John Kendall, of Wobnrn, d. w 90. 

Stephen, b. Sept. 24, 1766; m. Nov. 27, 1796, Jane Guliker. He 
moved to the State of Maine. 

jFrancis, b. Dec. 18, 1708 ; m. 1796, Martha Howe. 

Luct/, b. March 15, 1771 ; d. iinm. May 27, 1853, aged 82. 

Phe'be, b. Aug. 15, 1773 ; d. unm, June 6, 1859, aged 86. 



Solomon Barnard m. April 27, 1762, Mary Priest. He was a 
soldier in the French war, and marched to the relief of Fort William- 
Henry in 1757. He d. Aug. 1, 1775 ; she d. Dec. 23, 1807. 



Mary, b. June 1, 1763 ; m. April 12, 1780, Isaiah Bruce. 
Sarah, b. March 10, 1705 ; m. Aug. 22, 1786, Jonas Wilkins. 
Josiah, b. April 19, 1707 ; m. Katy Gates, and moved to Coos Co., N. H. 
Rebecca, b. Aug. 1, 1709; m. 1787, Kendall Bruce. 
Catc, b. Oct. 13, 1771 ; m. April 1, 1789, Eleazer Howe. 
Dolly, b. Dec. 14, 1773; d. Aug. 9, 1775. 



Francis Barnard m. May 9, 1796-, Martha Howe, dau. of Thad- 
deus and Levinah Howe. He d. Dec. 28, 1858, aged 90 ; she d. July 
22, 1848. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 2, 1796 ; m. Dec. 5, 1820, Israel L. Fames. 
Loring, b. Feb. 2, 1798 ; m. Sally Robinson, of Stow, and d. at New 

Ipswich, N. H., 1845. 
George, b. March 21, 1800 ; m. Jan. 8, 1829, Grace Goddard. 
Daniel S., b. July 22, 1802 ; d. Aug. 20, 1813. 
Mary Ann, b. Aug. 23, 1805 ; m. Jan. 2, 1827, Ephraim Babcock. 
William Francis, b. March 8, 1809 ; m. Oct. 6, 1835, Lydia Howe. 
Daniel S., b. Aug. 25, 1815; m. Martha Ward, of Wayland. 
Edward D., b. May 20, 1818 ; has moved West. 

The Barnards have been remarkable for longevity. Several of 
them living to the age of 85 or 90, and Lavinia (Mrs. Stevens) to the 
advanced age of 94^. 

There was another family of Barnards in Marl. Benjamin Bar- 
nard, by his wife Lucy, had Benjamin, b. Aug. 13, 1738 ; Jonathan, 
b. June 18, 1740, d. 1742 ; Lucy, b. Nov. 13, 1742. Their origin or 
destination I have not been able to trace with certainty. He may 
have been a cousin of Robert from Andover. 



THE BARNES FAMILY. 

The name of Barnes appears early on the Marl. Records ; but it is 
believed that the Barneses belonged to different families, though their 
names appear about the same time. 

Richard Barnes came to this country with his mother (who had 
married Thomas Blanchard for her 2d husband) and his grandmother, 
Agnes Bent, from Penton, Eng., in the ship Jonathan, in the year 



315 



1639. Richard was at that time about ten years of age. He went to 
reside with John Bent at Sudbury, with whom he came to Marl, in 
1657. He m. Deborah Dix, about 1668. He d. June 2-2, 1708, aged 
about 80, having survived his wife nearly 17 years. He settled south 
of the Pond, on the place now owned by Dr. Barnes, which has been 
the homestead of the family 200 years. He shared in the tirst division 
of the lands in 1660, and was one who contracted to build the min- 
ister's house the year following. He was among the prominent men 
of the town. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 10, 1669; m. John Dix, and resided at Hartford, Ct. 
jRichard, b. Jan. 16, 1673; he was twice married. 

Deborah, b. March 1, ; m. 1713, Roland Jones. 

John, b. ; d. 1697. 

\Edwnrd, b. , 1680 ; m. 1739, Mrs. Grace Rice, of Westboro'. 

Abigail, b. Oct. 3, 1683 ; m. Feb. 27, 1705, Peter Bent. 



Richard Barnes m. March 12, 1700, Elizabeth Stimpson, of 
VVatertown. She d. and he m. Dec. 6, 1715, Anne Hide, of Newton. 

Richard, b. Feb 12, 1717 ; probably d. young. 

Jonathan, b. July 30, 1718 ; d. Jan. 3, 1797, unm. 

Mary, b. Sept. 13, 1720. 

John, b. Nov. 21, 1722 ; d. Jan. ,3, 1794, unm. 

Deborah, b. Oct. 2(!, 1724 ; m. April 3, 1755, Bezaleel Walker. 

Sarah, b. , 1725 ; d. unm. 



Edward Barnes m. May 1(5, 1739, when he was well in years, 
Grace Rice, of West., widow of Simon Rice, and dan. of John New- 
ton. He d. Sept. 25, 17.55, aged 75. She m. for her 3d husband, 
Daniel Ward, and d. 1788, aged 84. 



Martha, b. Oct. 6, 1741 ; m. William Buckminster, of Barre. 
^Edward, b. March 21, 1744 ; m. Submit Forbush. 



Edward Barnes m. Jan. 23, 17()5, Submit Forbush, an adopted 
dau. of Zerubbabcl Rice. He d. Nov. 16, 1803, aged 59; she d. 
Aug. 6, 1827, aged 81. He was for many years a prominent and 
influential citizen, filling every important office within the gill of the 
town. He took an active part in the Revolutionary struggle, both 
as a citizen and a soldier. He was in the service as Lieut. Col., and 
contributed largely by his influence at home to sustain the cause. 
He was many years a Justice of the Peace, oflen represented the 
town in the General Court, and filled other important offices. He 
was emphatically a leading man in the place. 



Betsey R., b. April 2, 1766 ; m. Sept. 28, 1785, Aaron Brigham. 

Cale, b. Oct. 24, 1767 ; d. Sept. 24, 1845, unm., aged 78. 

j1 son, b. Sept. 15, 1768 ; d. Jun(^jl8, 1773. 

Martha, b. Sept. 27, 17(j9 ; m. Wm. Weeks, and r. to St. Albans, Vt. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 5, 1772 ; d. Sept. 3, 1775. 

Christian, b. Nov. 26, 1774 ; m. May 18, 1794, Jeduthan Smith. 

jEdward, b. April 30, 1778 ; m. Lucy Brigham. 

Sarah, b. Feb. 12, 1780 ; m. 1801, Ebcr Rice, and d. 1846. 

Henri/, b. March 4, 1783; d. Nov. 24, 1785. 

Mary, b. July 25, 1786 ; m. 1805, Joseph J. Souther. 

Jlnna, b. May 2, 1789; m. Willard Rice. 



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Edward Barnes m. May 30, 1808, Lucy Brigham, who is still 
living. He d. Jan. 24, 1851, aged 73. He had a family of 8 children, 
among whom are Edward F., b. 1809, Henry, b. 1811, and Charles IV., 
who are practicing physicians in the towns of Marl., North., and 
Wayland, respectively. The former grad. at H. C. 1838. 



Thomas Barnes was in Marl, early, and bought land of Jonathan 
Johnson in 1()G3, and was then a resident in the place. He d. as 
appears by his will, in 1679, in which he mentions his wife, Abigail, 
sons, Thomas, John, and William, and dau. Dorothy, Abigail, and 
Susan. Thomas Barnes came to the country in the Speedwell, in 
May, 1(356, in company with Shadrack Hapgood, John Fay, Nathaniel 
Goodnow, and Thomas Goodnow, whose daughter Abigail he married. 
He was 20 years of age when he came to this country. 

\Tfiomas, b. March 23, 1662 ; m. Mary Howe. 
Dorothy, b. Feb. 6, 1664. 

jJohn, b. Dec. 25, 1666 ; m. Hannah . 

ffilliam, b. April 3, 1669; probably moved to Haddam, Conn. 

Abigail, b. June 14, 1671. 

Susanna, b. ; m. June 4, 1699, Supply Weeks. 



Thomas Barnes m. 1685, Mary Howe. He moved to Brookfield, 
and was one of the leading men in resettling the place after it was 
destroyed by the Indians. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 9, 1692. 
Thankful, b. May 1, 1695. 
Brookfield. i, 



He may have had other children at 



John Barnes m. Hannah , 

and he d. April 5, 1752, aged 86. 
Breck's church. 



She d. Nov. 8, 1742, aged 66, 
He was a deacon of Rev. Mr. 



JJbtgail, b. Oct. 5, 1695; m. Nov. 1, 1716, Joseph Morse. 
Dorothy, b. March 21, 1698 ; m. March 19, 1719, James Woods. 
^Daniel, b. April 2, 1701; m. Zeruiah Eager, 1723. 

\ Jonathan, b. Nov. 26, 1703; m. Rachel . 

David, b. June 24, 1708; d. May 9, 1720. 

Hannah, b. Feb. 17, 1712 ; m. Dec. 3, 1734, Andrew Rice. 

\John, b. March 23, 1716 ; m. Dec. 6, 1738, Elizabeth Cranston. 



Daniel Barnes m. May 23, 1723, Zeruiah Eager, dau. of Abra- 
ham and Lydia Eager. She d. Sept. 12, 1781, aged 76 ; he d. May 
24, 1775, aged 74. He was a deacon of the church, and also held hia 
Majesty's commission as captain. He resided for a time in Shrews- 
bury, but returned to Marl, in 1733. 



Dorothy, b. March 13, 1724 ; d. Aug. 1, 1736. 

Lucy, b. Jan. 2, 1726 ; m. Jan. 23, 1743, Samuel Stevens. 

^Frederic, h. 1727 ; m. Mary Howe. 

\David, b. March 24, 1731 ; grad. H. C. 1752; d. 1811. 

Abraham, b. Nov. 22, 1733 ; m. June 3, 1762, Mary Stevens. 

\Daniel, b. July 19, 1736 ; m. Jan. 20, 1763, Martha Brigham. 

Samuel, b. Oct. 15, 1738 ; d. July 24, 1760. 

\Solovion, b. June 20, 1740 ; m. Judith Hapgood. 



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Ljfdia, ? , A „ I 4 i-'j'?. S ■"• March II, 176G, Joseph Brigham, Jr. 
Hannah, ^ ' ' ' i ni. Sept. 3, 1766, Caleb JBrighain. 

Zeruiah, b. Sept. 10, 1749; m. 17U9, John Woods. 



Jonathan Barnks m. Rachel 
she (1. Jan. 20, 1784. 



He d. Oct. 10, 1783, and 



] Silas, b. Jan. 21, 1735 ; ni. INIay 26, 1755, Betty Bigelou-. 

Elisha, b. Oct. 28, 173() ; d. .Iiinc 7, 1740. 

\Fortunatus, b. St^pt. 25, 1738; in. Peisis Hosmer. 

Rachel, h. July 13, 1740 ; rn. Jan. 27, 1763, John Warren, Jr. 

Liicij, b. July 7, 1742; m. Dec. 24, 1761, Joseph Hosmer. 

Dorothy, b. Dec. 18, 1747 ; in. Aug. 29, 1771, Solomon Bowker. 

Jonathan, b. Nov. 6, 17-19. 

Damd, b. Sept. 2, 1751 ; d. Jan. 28, 1756. 

William, b. March 21, 1753 ; m. May 22, 1773, Sarah Merriam. 



John Barnes m, Dec. 6, 1738, Elizabeth Cranston, dau. of Samuel 
and Elizabeth. She d. Aug. 25, 1749, and he m. Jan. 8, 1751, Ruth 
Rice, who d. July 1, 1752. He d. July 3, 1794. 

Moses, b. Dec. 14, 1740 ; m. 1764, Sarah Banister, dau. of John and 

Martha. 
Dollij, b. April 21, 1742. 

.laron, b. July 28, 1744 ; m. Lucy Stevens, 1767. 
Lovdl, b. Dec. 28, 174(5 ; d. July 24, 17.52. 
Francis, b. Nov. 25, 1748 ; m. Dec. 10, 1772, Persig Hollister. 



Frederick Barnes m. March 22, 1750, Mary Howe, dau. of 
Abraham and Rachel. He d. June 24, 1778. She d. March 25, 1813, 
aged 87. 

Benjamin,]}. Feb. 27, 1752; m. 1789, Sarah Woods. She d. 1812, 

aged 60. 
Jlsa,b. June 28, 1754; m. April 20, 1780, Matilda Woods, dau. of 

Alpheus Woods, and had Eben, b. Feb. 21, 1781, and perhaps other 

children. 
Lucy, b. Sept. 16, 1757 ; m. 1776, Obadiah Earce. 



David Barnes grad. at H. C. 17.52, and was ordained at Scituate, 
Nov. 27, 1754. He m. 1756, Rachel Leonard, of Norton, and d. 
April 26, 1811, aged 80 years. He was highly distinguished as a 
clergyman, and was honored with a degree of D. D. in 1783. 



Daniel Barnes m. Jan. 20, 1763, Martha Brigham, dau. of Joseph 
and Comfort (Bigelow) Brigham. 

John, b. Nov. 6, 1763 ; m. March 8, 1785, Sarah Howe, dau. of Abra- 
ham and Lydia. 
.Martha, b. May 9, 1766 ; m. Aug. 28, 1783, Fortunatus Brigham. 



Solomon Barnes m. May 2, 1764, Judith Hapgood, dau. of John 
and Abigail (Morse) Hapgood. She d. April 19, 1820, aged 77. He 
d. 1830, aged 90 years. 

Katharine, b. July 27, 1765 ; m. Nov. 26, 1783, Ithamar Brigham. 
\lVHliam, b. Sept. 3, 1766; m. 1788, Elizabeth Brigham. 
Samuel, b. 1772; d. Sept. 10, 1776. 
Daniel, b. Aug. 22, 1775 ; m. 1795, Louisa Howe. 
41 



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65 

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67 
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72 

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Silas Barnes m. May 26, 1755, Betty Bigelow. dau. of Cornelius 
and Mary (Graves) Bigelow. He d. Jan 6, 1813. She d. Sept. 3, 1801. 

Thomas, b. July 30, 1756. 

Elisha, b. Dec. 29, 1757 ; m. Aug. 9, 1782, Molly Weeks, and moved 

to Henniker, N. H. 
Betty, b. Dec. 16, 1759; m. April 3, 1777, Jonathan Ray. 
Paul, b. Oct. 10, 1761 ; m. Jan. 18, 1787, Abigail Brigham. 
Silas, b. Sept. 29, 1763 -, d. Jan. 6, 1783. 
Molly, b. Aug. 27, 1765; m. Joseph Arnold, Feb. 1, 1786, 
jJacob, b. May 3, 1769 ; m. Hepzibeth Howe. 



FoRTUNATUs Barnes HI. Pcrsis Hosmer, of Concord, Oct. 31, 1765. 

Daniel, b. Aug. 27, 1765; m. Aug. I, 1792, Sophia Brigham. 
Lydia, b. July 20, 1767. 60 Hannah, b. June 20, 1720. 

Jiilliam, b. April 5, 1773. 62 Persis, h. May 5, 1779. 



MosES Barnes m. April 4, 1764, Sarah Banister, dau. of John and 
Martha. He d. March 2, 1781. He was a captain in the Revolu- 
tionary service. She d. Jan. 18, 1826, aged 86. 



jLovewell, b. Dec. 26, 1764 ; m. Rebecca Hager. 

\Slephen, b. Nov. 22, 1766; m. Aug. 19, 1793, Betsey Park. 

Zeruiah, b. July 26, 1769; m. Dec. 9, 1795, Rev. Perley Howe, of 

Surry, N. H. 
Sarah, b. Dec. 7, 1772 ; m. Jabez Stow, 1792. 
Jlaron, b. April 14, 1775. GS Phebe, b. April 1, 1778. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 24, 1781 ; m. 1806, Joel Stow. 



Aaron Barnes m. 1767, Lucy Stevens, and had Lyman, b. Sept. 
8, 1772. He d. June 18, 1773 ; drowned in the river. 



William Barnes m. Sept. 16, 1788, Elizabeth Brigham. He d. 
March 7, 1833, aged 57. She d. Nov. 28, 1830, aged 62. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 17, 1788 ; m. Oct. 22, 1841, Elisha Crosby, and d. 

Aug. 23, 1845. 
Sarmiel, b. April 20, 1790 ; d. June 2, 1816, aged 26. 
Winslow, b. April 12, 1792 ; m. Nancy Newton, 1817, and d. 1861. 
Solomon, b. April 16, 1794 ; m. April 17, 1822, Sarah Howe. 
John, b. June 17, 1796 ; m. 1836, Sarah Bush, and d. Sept. 10, 1855. 
Judith, b. Dec. 16, 1797 ; m. Eli Cunningham, March 24, 1819. 
Lucy, h. July 15, 1800 ; m. Nov. 4, 1819, James Howe, and d. Oct. 

17, 1851. 
Lydia, b. Nov. 2, 1802. 

Cathamie, b. Feb. 7, 1805: m. May, 1835, Amasa Bishop. 
IVilliam, b. May 17, 1807 ; d. April 1, 1822. 
Emilia, b. Feb. 26, 1810 ; m. Sept. 1856, James Howe. 
Charlotte, b. Jan. 4, 1813 ; m. Nov. 1843, Joseph Johnson, and d. 1856. 



Jacob Barnes m. Jan. 15, 1793, Hepzibeth Howe. 
14, 1826, aged 52. 



She d. May 



He d. 



William, b. Aug. 6, 1793 ; m. Jan. 20, 1816, Anna Potter. 

Dec. 10, 1831. [?] 
Mana, Nov. 19, 1794 ; m. Dec. 23, 1818, Thomas H. Davis. 
Tileston B., b. Aug. 15, 1805 ; m. Mary Ann Proctor, and d. 1838 ; 

was killed by a load of wood running over him. 



319 



LovEWELL Barnes m. Oct. 17, 1786, Rebecca Eager, dau. of 
Uriah and Trypliosa Eager. She d. Jan. 23. 1830, and he ni. April 
13, 1831, Mrs. Lucretia Felton, wid. of Silas Feltou. He d. Aug. 4, 
1831, aged 07. He was many years engaged in town business, and 
rose to the rank of Col. in the militia. 



Hepzibeth, b. Dec. 16, 1786 ; m. Sept. 3, 1809, John Bigelow. 
Moses, b. June 28, 178!) ; m. Dec. 3, 1818, Hepzibetli Hapgood. 

Hennj, b. Nov. 20, 17!»0 ; m. 1817, ; d. 1845, in Philadelphia. 

JJaro'n, b. Sept, 18, 17l»2 ; m. 18f8, ; d. in Berlin, 1823. 

Ru'fus L., b. Aug. 7, 1794 ; resides in Philadelphia. 

Sophia, b. Feb. 23, 1796 ; m. Oct. 10, 1825, Winthrop Arnold. 

f'^«'Jb.July29,1796;5t{21!S°' 
Ira, ^ J 1 \A. 185b. 

Baxter, b. Nov. 26, 1800 ; m. in South. 1831 ; d. in Worcester, 1854. 

Diana, b. Jan. 13, 1803; d. July 17, 1829, aged 26. 

LucTj, b. Sept. 24, 1804: m. Oct. 29, 1823, Jackson Arnold. 

Merrick, b. Dec. 19, 1807 ; resides in Philadelphia, where he m. 1830. 

Alellen, b. Oct. 7, 1809 ; m. in Worcester, and resides in Boylston. 



Stephkn Barnes m. Aug. 9, 1793, Betsey Park, of Grafton, 
d. April 5, 1827, aged 60. She d. in Lowell, March 28, 1839. 



He 



Eliza, b. Nov. 17, 1795. Slie united with the Methodists, became a 
public speaker, and traveled the country as a religious teacher; 
also went a niissionarv among the Indians. 

Charles, b. Aug. 16, 1797. 100 James R., b. June 3, 1799. 

Marif Ann, b. Jan. 9, 1801. 

Charlotte, b. Dec. 1, 1802 ; m. Jan. 10, 182.5, Lambert Howe. 

George, b. Sept. 23, 1804. 104 John B., b. Jan. 6, 1807. 

Abigail, b. March 6, 1809. 106 Sarah, b. July 30, 1812. 



John Barnes was in Marl, early, and m. 1064, Johanna. She d. 
Oct. 29, 1712, and he d. Sept. 8, 1715. I have not been able to trace 
his lineage with certainty. His will mentions William Barnes, of 
Haddam, Ct., and John Barnes, Jr., of Marl., as his " kinsmen." He 
■probably had no children, as we lind no record of any, and none are 
mentioned in his will. As he refers to the children of Thomas Barnes 
as his " kinsmen," he was probably a brother or cousin of Thomas. 
He also remembers the children of Supply Weeks, who m. a dau. of 
Thomas Barnes. John Barnes was a deacon, and probably one of the 
first deacons of the church of Marl. Having no children, his family 
became extinct. 



The family of Richard and of Thomas Barnes, as far as we can 
ascertain, were not connected. There was another family of Barneses 
in Marl, at one time, of which mention has been made elsewhere, on 
whose marri.ige and children the town records are silent. When he 
came to town, and from what place, we can learn nothing with cer- 
tainty. I allude to Henry Barnes, the Loyalist. He was in town 
as early as 17.53, and appears to have been a magistrate, and a man 
of business. He was a trader, and set up a distillery, for distilling 
cider. He is spoken of as an " impostor," and probably came to 
Marl, from some of the seaport towns. He was denounced as a torif. 
He entertained the spies sent out by General Gage in 1775, and left 
the place that year. He does not appear to have been connected 
with the Marl. Barneses. He is supposed to have left the country 



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with the other Refugees, and to have died in England. He resided 
n?ar " Spring Hill," at whicli place lie was in trade, and he built the 
house known as the Cogswell place. His property was confiscated. 



BARSTOW. — Jeremiah Barstow m. Dec. 6, 1711, Sarah Howe, 
dau. of Joseph and Dorothy, and had Elizaheih, b, 1712; Dorothy, b. 
1714 ; John, b, Jan. 30, 1716 ; Jlbigail, b. 1717 ; ffilliam, b. Aug. 17, 
1719; Sarah, b. 1721; Susanna, b. 1723; Lydia, b. 1725; Jeremiah, 
b. July 5, 1727 ; Lucy, b. 1730. 

Jeremiah Barstow was a miller, and owned the mills and all the 
land now covered by the village of Feltonville, and sold the same in 
1723 to Robert Barnard. He probably left town soon after. 



THE BAETLETT FAMILY. 

The Bartletts were not among the earliest settlers in the town; nor 
is their record full and satisfactory. Living on the borders of the town, 
they have probably their record in part in the towns set off from Marl. 

Henry Bartlett m. Mary . 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 27, 1686 ; m. Dec. 9, 1710, John Prentiss. 
\Daniel, b. April 10, 1691 ; m. Feb. 12, 1717. Martha Howe. 
Mary, b. Oct. 20, 1693. 5 Henry, b. Oct. 22, 1696 ; d. 1699. 

S;£>.Aug.29,170L 

Lydia, b. Aug. 17, 1704 ; d. Dec. 15, 1722. 



Daniel Bartlett m. Feb. 12, 1717, Martha Howe, dau. of Elea- 
zer and Hannah (Howe) Howe. He d. May, 1764. He bore the 
honorable title of Ensign. 

Jotham, b. April 5, 1717; m. May 17, 1744, Miriam Howe. 
Sarah, b. June 30, 1718 ; m. June 30, 1759, Daniel Saunders. 
Daniel, b. Sept. 28, 1719. 12 Joseph, b. Nov. 24, 1720. 

Jlbis;ail, b. Oct. 30, 1721 ; m. Aug. 25, 1756, Joseph Stratton. 
Abraham, b. Sept. 21, 1722 ; d. Feb. 11, 1723. 

John, b. Nov. 25, 1724 ; m. Dec; 14, 1761, Mary Joiner, and perhaps 
d. 1764. 

^Jonathan, b. Jan. 26, 1725; in. Mary . 

Isaac, b. March 6, 1726. 

fi'""'' I b. March 12, 1728 ;\ . 

Mary, ^ ' ' ^ d. young. 

\Jonas, b. March 31, 1729; m. Elizabeth 



Mercy, b. May 31, 1730; m. June 13, 1765, George Oaks. 



JoN 


ATHAN Bartlett 
b. July 27, 1754. 


m. 


Mary 




Zadock, 


b. 


April 


10, 




Adam, 




23 


1756. 



Jonas Bartlett m. Elizabeth 



Elizabeth, b. Oct. 27, 1765. 25 Betty, b. June 6. 1768; d. young. 

\Jonas, b. Feb. 21, 1770. 27 Per'ler/, b. Oct. 14, 1772. 

Joel, b. Aug. 15, 1776 ; m. Nov. 28, 1800,'Sukey Howe. 

Po%, b. April 26, 1778. 

Gate, b. April 22, 1781 ; m. Aug. 30, 1797, Jonas Clisbee. 

Betsey, b. Feb. 13, 1783 ; m. June 2(i, 1799, Solomon B. Clisbee. 



321 

Jonas Bartlett, Jr, m. Thankful 



20-26- 

26-32 Ashley, b. March 8, 1789 



33 Lydia, b. Nov. 24, 1791. 



THE BARRETT FAMILY. 

lIuMPHRET Barrktt Came to Concord about 1640. He d. 16(52, 
afjed 70 ; his wife d. l()()3, aged 73. They left Thomas, John, Hum- 
phrey, and James; and probably daughters. Shattuck tells us that 
Thomas was drowned in Concord river, James moved to Charlestown, 
and John to Marl. 

John Barrett m. 1662, Mary Pond. lie d. July 22, 1711 ; and 
she d. Oct. 2, of the same year. He was in Marl, at the incorpora- 
tion of the town. He was one of those who met in l(i75 to make 
preparation to defend themselves against the Indians in Philip's 
War, and was assigned with Samuel Stow and Samuel Rice to 
defend the house of Joseph Rice. 

\John, b. 1()63 ; m. Deborah Howe. 4 Man/, b. 1666 ; d. young. 
Grace, b. June 18, l()(i!>; m. June 27, 1688, Abiel Bush. 
jMan/, b. April 24, 1()72. 
Lyd'ia, b. Sept. 5, 1674 ; m. April 18, 1699, Eleazer Tailor. 



John Barrktt rfi. 1688, Deborah Howe, dau. of Abraham and 
Hannah (Ward) Howe. He d. Oct. 5, 1715, aged .'52. She d. Nov. 
4, 1743, aged 76. He was honored with the title of Ensign. 

Hannah, b. Jan. 20, 1690; d. .Tan. 10, 1745, unm. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 28, I6!i2; m. April 10, 1710, Benjamin Whitney. 

Lydia, b. Aug. 23, l(i94 ; d. Sept. 12, 1695. 

Thankful, b. .Inly lO, 1697 ; m. April 20, 1715, Joseph Tainter. 

Benoni, b. Feb. 26, 1700; d. March 23, of the same year. 

This family appear to have become extinct in the male line in 
Marlborough. 



There was another family of Barretts, which is said to have come 
from Cambridge. 

His name appears upon the 



Thomas Barrett m. Jjydia 

Marl. Records in 1660. He d. 1()73. 



\T1iomas, b. 1688; m. Elizabeth Stow, of Concord. 
Heskr, b. Sept. 1670. 



Thomas Barrett m. Nov. 4, 1701, Elizabeth Stow, of Concord. 

Elizabeth, b. July 29, 1702 ; m. Feb. 4, 1728. Zerubbabcl Rice. 
Hepzibah, b. April 13, 1708; m. June 26, 1732, Eleazer Howe, Jr. 
Lydia, b. Jan. 3, 1712. 7 Sarah, b. Jan. 15, 1715. 

John, b. Dec. 3, 1718 ; d. May 14, 1739. 



BAYLEY.— Benjamin Bayley m. 1710, Deborah Howe, dau. of 
Eleazer and Hannah, who d. Marcli 17, 1718;, and he m. Dec. 1718, 
Elizabeth Howe. Their children were Benjamin, h. Feb. 23, 1713 ; 
Barnabas, b. May 1, 1715, m. July 21, 1748, Elizabeth Stevens; 
Benoni, b. Dec. 15, 1717. 



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JosHUA Batlet m. Mercy, and had Isaac, b. March 27, 1769; 
Elijah, b. Sept. 15, 1772; .flnna, b. Dec. 29, 1774; Lois, b. Aug. 28, 
1776; Eunice, b. May 11, 1778 ; James, h. March 4, 1780. 



THE BEAMAN FAMILY. 

Gamaliel Beaman came to New England in the Elizabeth Ann, 
and settled in Dorchester, 1635. lie was but 12 years old, when he 
came to the country. By his wife Mary, he had several children. 
This name is often Avritten Bcamont in the early records. 

Thomas Beaman, perhaps the youngest of his family, was b. 1649. 
He m. about 1678, Elizabeth Williams, dau. of Abraham and Joanna 
(Ward) Williams, of Marl. His father-in-law made him an heir by 
giving him by will, " threescore and six acres of land." He lived 
near the Pond. 



Elizabeth, b. Jan. 4, 1679; d. Jan. 16, same year. 

Eleazer, b. June 6, 1683; m. March 2, 1726, Hannah Howe. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 13, 1685; m. Oct. 28, 1719, Jacob Amsden. 

\Ahraham, b. May 4, 1692 ; m. Mary Rice. 

Lijdia, b. ; d. 1697. 8 Daniel, b. ; d. Oct. 27, 1722. 



Abraham Beaman m. March 16, 1725, Mary Rice, dau. of Caleb 
and Mary Rice. He d. Nov. 13, 1750 ; she d. May 18, 1790, aged 89. 
He was dignified with the prefix of Lieut. 

Elizabeth, b. Jan. 8, 1727; m. Jan. 30, 1752, Stephen Howe. 
\J\roah, b. May 19, 1730 ; m. Sept. 20, 1755, Lydia Howe. 
Mary, h. Dec. 1, 1734; m. March 29, 1768, Ithamar Brigham. 



Noah Beaman m. Lydia Howe. He died March 3, 1800; and 
she d. Nov. 5, 1806. She was dau. of Ephraim and Elizabeth (Rice) 
Howe. 

Lydia, b. April 9, 1756; m. Nov. 18, 1777, Josiah Parker. 
^J]braham, b. Nov. 14, 17.57 ; he was a soldier in the Revolution. 
Ao«/^, b. April 7, 1759 ; m. Nov. 9, 1780, Elizabeth Jewel, of Stow, 

and d. 1800. 
Jlnna, b. March 1, 1761 ; m. Nov. 2, 1786, Daniel Brigham. 
Aaron, b. Nov. 25, 1762; m. June 27, 1801, Hannah Fay. He was in 

the Revolutionary service in Rhode Island. 
Marij, b. Nov. 21, 1764; m. Aug. 25, 1783, John Loring. 
Samuel, b. Oct. 2!), 1766 ; d. July 3, 1791. 
Elizabeth, b. April 30, 1769. 



Abraham Beaman m. Lydia Gates, 1781, and had Christian, b. 
Jan. 26, 1786. 

Here the record of the Beamans ceases. 



THE BELLOWS FAMH^Y. 

John Bellows, aged 12 years, came to this country in the Hope- 
Avell, from London, in 1635. He was of Concord in 1645, where he 
m. May 9, 1655, Mary Wood, and moved to Marl., where he wag 



323 



residing at the incorporation of the town. He shared in the first 
division of the lands, both uphind and meadow. He d. 1G83, and she 
d. 1707. 



\Isaac, b. Sept. 13, 16G3 ; m. Elizabeth . 

\John, b. May 13, 1666 ; he was twice married. 
Thomas, b. Nov. 7, l<i(i8. 

\Eleazer, b. April 13, 1671 ; m. Esther . 

JVallianiel, b. April 15, 1676. 



Isaac Bellows m. Elizabeth 



He d. about 1746. 



Elizahdh b. March 17, 16i>5; m. May 23, 1715, Samuel Burton, Fram. 
Isaac, b. May !!», 161)7 ; m. Sept. 14, 1725, Thankful Witherbee. 
Samud, b. Nov. 20, ICtti). 

James, b. Dec. 21, 1701 ; m. Jan. 18, 1727, Thankful Willis. 
BafksUeha, b. Feb. 18, 1704. 12 Gideon, b. Aug. 12, 170G. 

Tabitlia, b. Nov. !», 1709. 14 David, b. Sept. 20, 1711. 

Jonathan, b. Dec. 7, 1713. 



John Bellows m. Hannah . Slie d. Dec. 11, 171!*, aged 

46, and he m. ^ug. 30, 1723, Sarah Johnson. He was assigned to 
John Newton's gairison in 1711. 

Hannah, b. May 12, I6i>5; d. young. 

Hepzibah, b. Dec. 5, 1<)96; m. Dec. 12, 1723, Edward Larkin. 
John, b. Sept. 26, 1698 ; m. Doc. 5, 1721, Mary Wheeler, of Con. 
Eliza Cook, b. Feb. 12, 1701 ; ui. June .30, 1727, Samuel Eddy. 
Man/, b. Nov. 12, 1702; m. May H\, 1725, Richard Gleason. 
Mercy, b. March 28, 1705 ; m. June 20. 1725, John Eddy. 
Ithanutr, b. July 25, 1708. 23 Joseph, b. April 24, 1711. 

Moses, b. June 9, 1713. 25 Martha, b. Mav 31, 1715. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 15, 1724. 27 Hannah, b. March 26, 1726. 



Eleazer Bellows m. Esther . He, like his brother John, was 

assigned to John Newton's garrison in 1711. 

^Thomas, b. Sept. 30, 1693 ; m. Martha Maverick, 1716. 

Eleazer, b. Aug. 1, 16! t6, 

Danid, b. June 1, l(i99 ; d. Sept. 6, 1719. 

Abigail, b. May 27, 1701 ; m. Nov. 28, 1723, Jonathan Johnson. 

Jonathan, b. May 27, 1704. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 17, 1706; m. Aug. 20, 1724, Samuel Gibbs. 



Thomas Bellows m. May 27, 1716, Martha Maverick, of Fram- 
ingham. About 1725, he left Marl., and went first to Framingham, 
and afterwards perhaps to Hopkinton. His first five children only 
were b. in Marl. 



35 Margaret, b. Oct. 16, 1718. 
37 Zeruiah, b. Jan. 15, 1723. 



Elias, b. May 12, 1717. 

Estlier, b. Jan. 2.5, 1721. 

Martha, b. Dec. 26, 1724. 

Keziah, b. March 15, 1727, in Hopkinton. 

Thomas, b. Feb. 28, 1732, in South. 

Abigail, b. March 6, 1734, in South. 

Mavirek, b. 1735, in Hop. 43 James, 1736, in Hop. 

The Bellowses resided in the southerly part of the town, and hence 
were set off with Southborougii, where a continuation of tiie family 



324 



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] record can undoubtedly be found. One of the descendants of this 
family moved to Walpole, N. H., and left his name upon the beautiful 
rapids on the Connecticut. Hence the name, " Bellows Palls." 



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5 



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8-11 
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THE BENT FAMILY. 

John Bent, of Sudbury, came to this country from Southampton, 
Eng., in the Confidence, 1638. He was at tliat time 3.5 years of age, 
and had a family. He was one of the petitioners for Marl. He had 
by wife Martha, Robert, William, Peter, John, and Anne, born in 
England; and Joseph, b. 1641, Martha, and perliaps others, born in 
this country. His will, dated 1672, mentions wife Martha, sons Peter, 
John, and Joseph, and dan. Agnes Rice and Martha Howe. His 
oldest son. Peter, was made his Executor. He d. Sept. 27, 1672, and 
his wid. d. 1679. Agnes m. Edward Rice, and Martha m. 1663, 
Samuel Howe. 

Peter Bent b. in Eng., m. Elizabeth , of Cambridge. His 

will, dated Dec. 21, 1(j74, and proved 1678, mentions wife Elizabeth, 
sons Peter, John, and Zaccheus, and dau. Hopestill, Elizabeth, Martha, 
Agnes, and Patience. He speaks of Zaccheus as being " weak in 
body," and of a portion of his children, if not all, as being then 
minors. He, like his father, was one of the petitioners for the town- 
ship of Marl. He came to Marl, soon after the incorporation of the 
town, and located himself upon a lot south of the Pond, where his 
descendants resided for several generations. He contracted in 1661 to 
build a bridge across Sudbury River, so as to afford a direct commu- 
nication between the two towns, " for horse and man and laden carts 
to pass over." He was a large land-holder, and his real estate at the 
time of his death was valued at £431. He had a grant of land for 
building a mill on Stony Brook, which was probably the second mill 
built in the township. His inventory shows that he was a man for 
the times; his appraisers finding among his effects 1 pair of pistols, 
holsters, and 3 swords. 

Elizabeth, b. 1658. 4 ^gnes, b. Aug. 19, 1661. 

John, b. Jan. 8, 1663. 6 Zaccheus, b. . 7 Martha, b. . 

\Peter, b. ; m. Feb. 27, 1705, Abigail Barnes. 

Patience, b. Aug. 28, 1670. 10 Hopestill, b. Jan. 17, 1672. 

The last two only are recorded in Marl. 



Peter Bent m. Feb. 27, 1705, Abigail Barnes, daughter of Richard 
and Deborah (Dix) Barnes. He d. March 3, 1717. 

Beulah, b. March 27, 1705. 

Wtter, b. March 20, 1707; m. Mary . 

John, b. Sept. 24, 1708. 14 Migail, b. Sept. 1, 1710. 

Elizabeth, b. Sept. 5, 1712. 16 Jabez, b. Jan. 28, 1716. 



Peter Bent m. Mary . He died March 11, 1798, aged 91. 

She d. June 3, 1808. He was a prominent man in town, and repre- 
sented his fellow-citizens in the General Court, and in the Provincial 
Congress, in the perilous days of the Revolution, when the people 
would naturally fall back upon their fi;rmest and most reliable men. 



Peter, b. Oct. 22, 1733 ; d. Aug. 3, 1740. 

Sarah, b. June 21, 1735; m. April 13, 1784, Alpheus Woods, as his 
2d wife. 



325 



Mary, b. April 18, 1737; m. Fay. 

Jabez, b. Feb. 28, 1739 ; d. Aug. 5, 1740. 

Patience, h. Feb. 13, 1741. 

Deborah, b. June 24, 1743; d. 1745. 

Anne, b. June 30, 1745; d. April 17, 1828, aged 85 years. 

Peter, b. Jan. G, 1747; m. June 16, 1779, Anne Walker, and d. 1801. 

Jabez, h. Jan. 29, 1749 ; d. unm. May 2(i, 1817. He made a bequest 
of $100 to the West Parish in Marl., the income of which should 
be appropriated to a Lecture annually, designed for the improve- 
ment of the young. 

Deborah, b. March 5, 1751 ; d. Feb. 20, 1755. 

Abigail, b. Jan. 29, 17.54; m. Sept. 12, 1771, Benajah Brigham. 

The Record of the Bents is very imperfect. 



THE BENDER FAMILY. 

Peter Bender came to Marl, in 17G4, to reside with Henry Barnes, 
a merchant of tliat town. On the 25th of February, 1707, he m. 
Abigail Brigham, dau. of Jotham and Abigail Brigham. She d. April 
27, 1805, aged 60. He m. a 2d wife in Bolton, where he d., aged 87. 

Samuel, b. March 1, 1768; m. late in life a Miss Barnard, of Northb. 

John, b. Nov. 4, 1769. He served his time in Boston as a merchant, 
embarked for S. C. on business, and d. on the passage. 

Jotham, b. Dec. 19, 1771 ; grad. H. C. 179(;, studied law, and d. 1800. 

Louisa, b. April 15, 1774; m. Sept. 17, 1801, Isaiah L. Green. He 
was a resident of the Old Colony, was a man of distinction, and 
represented his District four years in Congress. 

Betseij, b. Sept. 10, 1776 ; m. Oct. 21, 1799, David Greenough, of Bos- 
ton. She is living in Cambridge, in her 85th year. Their family 
are quite celebrated. The late Horatio Greenough, the distin- 
guished sculptor, was their son, and Richard Saltonstall Greenough, 
a sculptor now in Paris, is another. One of tlieir dau. m. Thomas 
B. Curtis, Esq., of Boston, and another Charles Huntington, Esq., 
also of Boston. 

Stephen, b. July 9, 1779; went to sea and d. abroad. 

Jacob, b. Sept. 23, 1781 ; took the name of Hastings, grad. at Yale 
Col., read law, and d. in New York State. 

Hcnnf, b. May 31, 1784 ; he was a Lieut, in the army in the war of 
1812, and d. about 1856. 

Abigail, b. May 18, 1787 ; m. Joseph Sawyer, Esq., a trader in Bolton. 



THE BIGELOW FAMILY. 

The Bigeloics came to Marl, between 1690 and 1700, from Water- 
town. This family was early in the country, and may be traced to a 
remote period in England, even to the reign of Henry III., when the 
name was written Jiaguleij, and was derived from the place where 
they dwelt. Richard at that time was lord of Bitguley, and his de- 
scendants took the name of the place. In the reign of Henry VII. 
Ralph de Baguley was lord of Ollerton Hall, and d. 1540, leaving 
Randall and Nicholas. Randall d. 1556, and his sons, Philip and 
Robert, divided his estate. Robert died 1562, leaving Randall and 
John, both of whom moved to Suffolk. Randall d. 1626, leaving two 
sons, Francis and John. Francis d. 1657, and gave by will a portion 
of his property to his brother John, then in New England. 
42 



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John Bagulet, or Bigelow, as the name is now written, was 
baptized in England, Feb. 16, 1617 ; he came to Watertown early, 
where he m. Oct. 30, 1642, Mary Warren, also b. in England. She 
d. Oct. 19, 1691, and he m. 1694, Sarah Bemis. He d. July 14, 1703, 
aged 86. He was the ancestor of the numerous families of Bigelows 
in New England. He had 12 children — 6 sons and 6 dau. The name 
is variously written in the Watertown records — Bigulah, Biglo, and 
Bigloiv. 

John, b. Oct. 27, 1643. He settled in Hartford, Conn., where he m. 
Rebecca Butler. 

Jonathan, b. Dec. 11, 1646. He also settled in Hartford, where he 
had a large number of descendants. 

Danid, b. Dec. 1, 1650. He m. Abiah Pratt, dau. of Thomas, of 
Framingham, where he finally settled. 

\Samuel, b. Oct. 28, 1653 ; m. Mary Flagg. 

Joshua, b. Nov. 5, 1655 ; m. Elizabeth Flagg. He was in King Philip's 
war, was wounded, and received a grant of land in Worcester. He 
was one of the grantees of Narraganset No. 2, (now Westminster,) 
to which place he removed with his son Eliezer in 1742, where he 
d. 1745, and where his descendants have been quite numerous. 

James, b. . He resided in Watertown, where he was thrice mar- 
ried, and had James, John, Patience and Abraham. 



Samuel Bigelow m. June 3, 1674, Mary Flagg. He resided in 
Watertown, which he represented, 1708, '9, and '10. He was an inn- 
holder from 1702 to 1716. He had ten children, several of whom 
settled in Marl. 



]John, b. May 9, 1675 ; m. Jerusha Garfield, r. Marl. 
Mary, b. Sept. 12, 1677 ; m. 1700, David Bruce, Marl. 
jSamuel, b. Sept. 18, 1679 ; was twice married, lived in Marl. 
Sarah, b. Oct. 1, 1681 ; m. Josiah Howe, Jr., Marl. 
\Thomas, b. Oct. 24, 1683; m. Mary Livermore, lived in Marl. 
Marlhfi, b. April 4, 1686. 14 Abigail, b. May 7, 1687. 

Hannah, b. ; m. May 24, 1711, Daniel Warren. 

Isaac, b. March 19, 1690 ; m. Mary Bond, moved to Conn. 
Deliverance, b. Sept. 22, 1695 ; m. 1715, John Stearns, of Lexington. 



John Bigelow m. June 12, 1696, Jerusha Garfield, and settled in 
Marl. In 1705, being at Lancaster, at the garrison house of Mr. 
Thomas Sawyer, he was, with Mr. Sawyer and his son Elias, taken by 
the Indians, and conveyed to Canada. They obtained their release 
in the following manner. Both of them were ingenious mechanics — 
Sawyer a blacksmith, and Bigelow a carpenter. While at Montreal, 
they proposed to the French Governor, that in case he would procure 
their ransom, they would erect for him a saw-mill, there being none 
at that time in Canada. The offer was readily accepted ; they ful- 
filled their engagement ; and after some delays, they were permitted 
to return to their friends. Mr. Bigelow, in token of his gratitude for 
his remarkable deliverance from captivity, called his daughter, born 
after his return, " Comfort,^'' and a second, " Freedom," as expressive 
of the happiness and peace he then enjoyed, compared with what he 
suffered while a prisoner. He d. Sept. 8, 1769, aged 94 years, 4 mos. 
and 7 days. She d. Jan. 16, 1758. 



Jerusha, h. May 17, 1697; m. Dec. 11, 1718, John Matthews. 
Thankfvl, b. June 8, 1699 ; m. John Howe, Feb. 11, 1724. 



327 



Joseph, b. Jan. 1, 1703 ; m. Martha Bri^ham, 1795, lived in Shrewsbury, 
John, b. Oct. 28, 1704 ; m. Rebecca Howe, 1728, settled in Holden. 
Comfort, b. Sept. 23, 1707 ; ni. 1728, Joseph Brigham. 
Freedom, b. Feb. 14, 1710; m. John Bowker, Westboro'. 

f"''"] i b. Nov. 13, 1714 A ,, „ 
\(jershom, ^ ' ' ^ m. Mary Howe. 

Jotham, b. Sept. 21, 1717; moved to Guilford, Conn. 

Benjamin, b. Oct. 17, 1720 ; m. Levinah Thomas, lived in Shrews. 

Sarah, b. June 20, 1724 ; m. 1745, John Langdon. 



Samuel Bigelow m, 1705, Ruth Warren, of Watertown, who d. 
April, 1716, and he m. Dec. IG, 171G, Mary Gleason, of Sherburne. 
He resided on the " Farm," in Marl. 



to 



Mary, b. Dec. 17, 1705; m. Dec. 10, 1727, Daniel Ward. 
Samuel, b. Oct. 16, 1707 ; m. 1729, Jedidah Hathron, moved 

Shrewsbury. 
^Cornelius, b. Nov. 24, 1710 ; m. Mary Graves. 
Jedediah, b. Feb. 8, 1714 ; m. Thomazine Hemmenway, r. Graflon. 
Ruth, b. and d. 1716. 

Jason, b. April 11, 1718 ; m. Abigail Witt, and d. in Brookfield. 
Ruth, b. Dec. 30, 1719; m. June 7, 1743, Daniel Hemmenway. 
Jlmaiiah, b. Sept. 14, 1722; m. Lydia, dau. of Thomas Brigham of 

Marl., and settled in Boylston. 
Martha, b. Oct. 21, 1724. 



Thomas Bigelow m. July, 170.5, Mary Livermore, of Watertown. 
He probably came to the place about the time of his marriage, and 
like his brothers John and Samuel, located upon the " Alcocke Farm." 
In 1711, when protection against the Indians was important, and the 
families were assigned to different garrisons, the three Bigelow 
families were assigned to Joseph Morse's garrison. 

\Thoims, b. April 26, 1706 ; m. Elizabeth . 

Mary, b. Sept. 2, 1707; m. Goddard. 

Grace, b. Feb. 7, 1709 ; m. Joseph Hagcr. 

Unah, b. July 15, 1711 ; killed accidentally when young. 

Jlhraham, b. March 5, 1713 ; lived in Weston. 

Isaac, b. June 30, 1716 ; d. 1736. 

Jacob, b. Sept. 1. 1717 ; m. Dec. 4, 1738, Susanna Mead, r. Waltham. 



Gershom Bigelow m. Mary Howe, dau. of Thomas. lie d. Jan. 
3, 1812, aged 97. She d. June 9, 1802, aged 84. 

^Timothy, b. Nov. 1, 1738 ; m. March 7, 1763, Miriam Howe. 
\lvory, b. Oct. 7, 1741 ; m. Aug. 13, 1763, Sophia Banister. 
Mary, b. Oct. 10, 1746; m. May 19, 1762, John Weeks. 
Anna, b. April 27, 1749. 



Cornelius Bigelow m. Dec. 18, 1731, Mary Graves, of West. 

Cornelius, b. Dec. 30, 1732. 50 Mary, b. Jan. 23, 1734. 

Betsey, b. Aug. 12, 1735; m. May 26, 1755, Silas Barnes. 



Thomas Bigelow m. Elizabeth 



She d. Jan. 1, 1770, aged 62. 



Elizabeth, b. May 14, 1731 ; d. June 28, 1731. 

Mehitabel, b. Aug. 15, 1733 ; m. June 13, 1758, Fortunatua Eager. 



328 



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72 
73 
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88 
89 
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91 
92 



Betsey, b. Nov. 23, 1735. 55 Mary, b. March 21, 1739. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 12, 1741 ; m. Oct. 8, 176-, Bezaleel Howe. 

Thomas, b. Dec. 6, 1743; d. Sept. 11, 1748. 

Uriah, b. March 4, 1746 ; d. Aug. 8, 1748. 

Thankful, b. Jan. 17, 1749; m. April 22, 1767, Jonathan Weeks. 



Timothy Bigelow m. April 7, 1763, Miriam Howe, dau. of Joseph 
and Ruth. He d. Nov. 6, 1817, aged 78. She d. Nov. 14, 1825. 



David, b. Oct. 16, 1763; m. 1793, Deborah Dean. 
Lydia, b. Jan. 13, 1766 ; m. Nov. 8, 1785, Moses Eamea. 
\Ephraim, b. 1768 ; was twice married. 



Ivory Bigelow m. Aug. 13, 1763, Sophia Banister, dau. of John 
and Abigail Banister. He d. Feb. 14, 1804, aged 63. He had the 
misfortune to lose three children in 1775, within eight days. She d. 
Aug. 13, J 830, aged 83. He was honored with title of Lieut. 



\ William, b. Jan. 8, 1764 ; m. Catharine Brigham. 

\ Christopher Banister, b. June 20, 1765 ; m. Rhoda Gleason. 

Solomon, b. Dec. 2, 1766 ; d. Dec. 9, same year. 

\Gershom, h. March 22, 1768 ; was twice married.- 

Martha, b. Nov. 22, 1769 ; d. Sept. 1, 1775. 

Migail, b. Sept. 22, 1772 ; d. Aug. 23, 1775. 

John, b. March 2, 1774 ; d. Aug. 30, 1775. 

Sophia, b. June 7, 1777 ; m. June 21, 1798, John Lewis. 

Phebe, b. Jan. 7, 1778 ; d. unm. 

Mary, b. March 4, 1781 ; d. May 6, 1784. 

Anna, b. Aug. 8, 1783 ; d. unm. 

\hory, b. Jan. 1, 1785 ; m. Feb. 23, 1809, Sukey Rice. 

Benjamin, b. June 3, 1788 ; m. Mary , and d. 1829. 



Ephraim Bigelow m. March 8, 1798, Molly Arnold, who d. Sept. 
9, 1806, and he m. 1808, Elizabeth Harrington. He d. Oct. 26, 1843, 
aged 75. She d. Feb. 4, 1847, aged 69. 



Patty, b. June 8, 1798; m. Jonah Collens, of South., March 28, 

Betsey, b. April 12, 1800 ; m. Samuel Howe. 

Mary, b. Aug. 12, 1801 ; m. Ashley Brigham, May 11, 1825. 

Nahhi, b. Dec. 31, 1803 ; m. April 10, 1822, Augustus Reed. 

William,}, . A Mia- S d. 1809. 

Willard, \ °' ^"^- ^' ^^^^ ' \ m. Parmela Smith, of Hopkinton. 

William, b. Aug. 12, 1809; d. Sept. 11, 1843, unm. 

Lyman M., b. July 26, 1811 ; m. Weeks. 

Lijdia, b. Feb. 6. 1813; d. Nov. 11, 1817. 
Emcline, b. July 24, 1815 ; d. Nov. 3, 1817. 
Emerson, b. Nov. 21, 1817. 



1821. 



William Bigelow m. May 14, 1786, Catharine Brigham, dau. of 
Antipas. He d. Dec. 30, 1807. She d. Feb. 23, 1831, aged 64. 

John, b. Oct. 25, 1786 ; m. Sept. 3, 1809, Hepzabeth Barnes, and d. 1824. 

Edward, b. Nov. 18, 1788 ; m. Bartlett, r. in New York State. 

Asa, b. Jan. 19, 1791 ; m. Oct. 4, 1809, Lucy Hapgood, and d. 1829. 
Abigail, b. April 11, 1793; m. Dec. 31, 1808, Levi Howe. 
Jotham, b. March 14, 1795 ; went West. 
Artemas, b. Jan. 14, 1798; d. 1823. 





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=^^^^-^ (2y0i^t^^^y/cr^xJ 



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Benjamin Bigelow m. Mary , and had Joseph T., b. 1812; 

Louisa, b. 1815 ; Mary, b. 1817; JVilliam D., b. 1819; TTieophilus, 
b. 1825, d. 1850 ; Jllden B., b. 1827. 



BAINS. — William Bains m. Martha , and had William, b. 

Dec. 6, 1740; Lydia,h. June 4, 1742; Phillips, h. May 15, 1743; 
Eleazer, b. Aug. 24, 1745. 



THE BOND FAMILY. 

William Bond, of Wat., m. Sarah Biscoe, and had David, b. 1690, 
who m. Hannah Cooledge, and had Abraham, b. 172G, who m. Dinah 
Forbes, and lived in Westborough. 

John Bond, one of their children, b. 1763, m. Feb. 16, 1792, Sarah 
Rice, dau. of Eiisha and Eunice (Williams) Rice. They resided first 
in Northboroutrh, and then in Marlborough. Their record is imper- 
fect. He d. Aug. 17, 1822. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 13, 1794 ; m. 1822, Reuben Babcock, Jr., of North. 

Avery, h. 

Lucy M., b. Nov. 5, 1799 ; m. N. W. Chamberlain, and moved to Ohio. 

Lydia, b. June 2, 1801 ; m. 1828, Joseph L. Lecain. 

Mai-y, b. Oct. 29, 1803 ; m. Elbra Hemenway, of Framingham. 

Julia A., b. ; m. Abraham Mahan, of North., 1827. 

John L., b. ; m. Mary Adams, resides at Marl. 

Eiisha R., b. ; Adaline Rice, resides at Marl. 



THE BOAVKER FAMILY. 

John Bowker was early in Marlborough. He was perhaps son of 
Edward, of Dorchester. He m. Feb. 8, 1678, Mary Howe, dau. of 
Abraham and Hannah (Ward) Howe. She d. Sept. 29, 1723; and he 
d. Aug. 27, 1721, aged 70. This name is said to be of Swedish ori- 
gin, and is often spelt Bouker. 

John, h. Sept. 1679 ; m. and had John, who m. Freedom Bigelow, and 

resided in Shrewsbury. 

Martha,}, ^t ur irocr S ™- Nov. 30, 1704, John Forbush. 
,, >o. March o, 1685; < (^\„ 

Mary, ^ } ™- Gates. 

\Asa, b. Nov. 22, 1691 ; m. Feb. 28, 1718, Martha Eager. 

jEzekiel, b. Nov. 5, 1693 ; m. June 24, 1733, Abigail Rice. ^ 

Hannah, b. Sept. 21, 1699 ; m. Dec. 6, 1721, Gershom Howe.~~ ' 

Rachel, b. Sept. 9, 1702 ; d. unm. 1754. She gave by will a Silver 

Tankard to the Church in Marl, worth £12. 



Asa Bowker m, Martha Eager, dau. of Abraham and Lydia 
(Woods) Eager, b. Aug. 15, 1693. 



Hezekiah, b. June 25, 1718. 
Mary, b. Feb. 27, 1723. 



10 Martha, b. June 21, 1722. 
12 Charles, b. Aug. 17, 1725. 



EzEKiEL Bowker m. Jan. 24, 1733, Abigail Rice. He d. Nov. 24, 
1744, aged 51. 

Mary, b. Oct. 13, 1733 ; d. young. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 30, 1734 ; m. July 27, 1758, Silas Wheeler. 

Man/, h. Jan. 27, 1737. 16 Anria, bap. Aug. 10, 1737. 



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There were others of the name of Bowker, in Marl., but their 
record is so imperfect, that I cannot trace them. 

Solomon Bowker m. April 21, 1770, Mary Weeks. She d. Feb. 
1], 1771, and he m. Aug. 29, 1771, Dorothy Barnes. They had Jona- 
than, b. Aug. 9, 1774 ; Abraluim M., b. April 29, 1778 ; Dorcas, b. 
July 21, 1780 ; Betsey, b. Nov. 5, 1782. 



THE BOYD FAMILY. 

The ancestor of the Boyds of Marlborough, we are informed, was 
John Boyd, who came to this country about 1636, and settled in 
Boston, wliere he m. Ann Glenn, of Scotch descent. She came to 
this country as a teacher, and located in Boston, near Beacon St. ; 
she also gave instruction in spinning and weaving linen, and in other 
branches of art or industry. She d. in the latter part of tiie century ; 
but we have no record of the death of either of them, or the birtii of 
but one of their children. 



^Alexander, m. Lucy Forbes. 

Thomas, d. in Virginia, and left a family. 

James, d. at sea. 

jH'illiam, b. 1735; is the ancestor of the family in Marlborough. 



Alexander Boyd came to Marl, to dwell with Samuel Brigham, 
Esq., about 1754. He m. Oct. 1, 1760, Lucy Forbes, and had Anna, 
h. Dec. 27, 1761, m. 1784, Solomon Hunter; Elizabeth, b. Feb. 1764, 
m. 1787, Aaron Fames ; and perhaps other children. Lucy, his wife, 
d. 1766, aged 23. He d. in Vermont. 



William Botd m. July 8, 1766, Lydia Morse, dan. of Jonas and 
Lucy Morse. He came to Marl, when he was about 12 years of age, 
and was adopted by a Mr. Stratton, and afterward inherited iiis estate. 
He served in the war of the Revolution. He d. Aug. 5, 1817, aged 
82. She d. Jan. 24, 1817, aged 72. 

miliam, b. May 11, 1767; d. Sept. 27, 1772. 

Lydia, b. June 18, 1770; m. Aug 17, 1791, Jedediah Brigham. 

Lucy, b. Oct. 7, 1772 ; m. Nov. 24, 1795, Elisha Rice. 

William, b. Dec. 8, 1774; d. 1776. 

Thomas, b. Dec. 11, 1776; d. 1777. 

\John, b. April 22, 1778; m. Oct. 4, 1804, Sophia Phelps. 

Lavina, b. Aug. 27, 1780 ; m. June 12, 1805, Erastus Sumner, son of 

Rev. Dr. Sumner, of Shrewsbury, and resides on the old parsonage 

in that town. 
Anna, b. Dec. 10, 1782 ; m. July 9, 1809, James Woods. 



John Boyd m. Sophia Phelps, dau. of Roger Phelps. He d. May 
8, 1856, aged 78. Siie d. Oct. 30, 1854, aged 69. 

ff'illiam, h. Dec. 3, 1804 ; unm. 

Andrew, b. July 2(), 1806; m. March, 1835, Asenath Hitchcock, and 

d. 1846. 
James, b. Sept. 29, 1808 ; m. Jan. 1, 1839, Ann Hitchcock. She d. 

Oct. 15, 1841. 
Joseph, b. Dec. 26, 1810 ; m. April 20, 1847, M. E. Bridge. 
Elizabeth, b. Dec. 25, 1812 ; m. 1840, Josiah Bennett. 



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Samiiel, b. June 3, 1815 ; m. May 14, 1845, A. F. Brigham. 

Lydia, b. May 30, 1818; d. Sept. 6, 1842, aged 24. 

John M., b. May 21, 1820 ; m. Sept. 20, 1846, Elizabeth Tainter. 

Benjamiriy b. Sept. 3, 1822; lives at Dubuque, Iowa; unra. 

Sophia, b. Sept. 17, 1824. 

Thomas, b. Nov. 22, 1825 ; m. 18.52, Martha Fales. 

Roger, b. Dec. 5, 1827 ; m. May, 1850, Harriet A. Felton. 

The Boyds are extensively engaged in the boot and shoe manufac- 
ture, and have done much to build up the village. 



BRADISH. — James Bradish m. June IG, 1708, Damaris Rice, and 
had Hipzibah, b. 1709 ; Sarah, b. 1711 ; Robert, b. 1712 ; Mary, b. 
1715; James, b. 1717. 



THE BRECK FAMILY. 

Rev. Robert Breck was son of Capt. John Breck, of Dorchester. 
He was b. Dec. 7, 1682, grad. at H. C. 1700, and was settled at 
Marl. Oct. 25, 1704, when he was but 22 years of age. He was a 
learned and valuable minister, and stood deservedly high in his pro- 
fession, as we have shown in the body of this work. He. m. Sept. 8, 
1707, Elizabeth Wainwright, of Haverhill. He d. Jan. G, 1731, in the 
49th year of his age, and the 27th year of his ministry, greatly 
lamented by his people. He was not only distinguished himself, but 
was distinguished in his family. Elizabeth, wid. of Mr. Breck, d. 
June 8, 1736. 

Elizabeth, b. Sept. 23, 1709 ; m. Dec. 22, 1725, Abraham Williams, a 
leading and prominent citizen of Marl. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 10, 1711 ; m. Jan. 20, 1728, Benjamin Gott, a physi- 
cian of Marl., and d. April 11, 1740. 

Robert, b. July 25, 1713 ; grad. H. Coll. 1730. He devoted himself 
to the ministry, was settled in Springfield, and d. 1784. He was 
distinguished in his profession, and highly respected by his people. 

Hannah, b. Feb. 10, 1710 ; m. Rev. Ebenezer Parkman, of Westboro', 
and was the mother of a family, quite distinguished and respectable, 
being the maternal ancestor of the Drs. Parkman, of Boston. 

Samuel, b. May 17, 1723. He grad. H. C. 1741 ; was a surgeon in 
the army during the French war. He m. at Springfield, where he 
d. 1704. 

Anna, b. March 1.3, 1725; d. Nov. 24, 1726. 



THE BRIGHAM FAMILY. 

The Brighams were not among the very first settlers of Marl., 
though they came to the place quite early, and became a numerous 
family, extending over almost the whole of the original township. 

Thomas Brigham, the ancestor of the Brighams in New England, 
embarked at London for America, April 18, 1035, in the ship Susan 
and Ellyn, Edward Payne, master. He was then 32 years of age, 
and consequently was b. in 1003. He settled in Watertown, near 
Cambridge line, on land which was afterward set to Cambridge. He 
was made freeman in 1639, and was selectman in 1640, and subse- 



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quently. He m. about 1G37, Mercy Hurd, b. in England. Ho d. Dec. 
IS, 1G53, and slie m. 1G55, Edmund Rice, then of Sud., but afterwards 
of Marl. He d. and she m. as her 3d husband, William Hunt of Marl., 
who d. 16G7, and she d. 1GU3. 

Ma?-}j, b. probably in Watertown. 

jThomas, b. lG4i ; m. Mary Rice, dau. of Henry Rice. 
\John, b. March *J, 1G45; he was thrice married. 
Hannah, b. March 9, 1G50 ; m. Samuel Wells, of Conn. 
\Samuel, b. Jan. 12, 1G52; m. Elizabeth Howe. 



Thomas Brigham m, Mary Rice, dau. of Henry and Elizabeth 
(Moore) Rice. She d. and he m. Mrs. Susanna Morse of Watertown. 
He d, Nov. 25, 1717, aged 7G. He came into Marl, with his mother, 
who m. Edmund Rice, and on arriving at age, he purchased a town 
right, settled in the south-west part of the town, on what is now 
called the " Warren Brigliam farm," and on the south road to North- 
borough. The house whicii he built after King Philip's war, is still 
standing; and even the chair in which he expired, is in the neighbor- 
hood, in the possession of one of his descendants, Mrs. Lewis Ames. 
He was a prominent man in the town. 

Thotmis, b. Feb. 24, 1GG6. 

^Mttfum, b. June 17, 1(]71. 1) David, b. April 11, 1G73 ; d. young, 

\ Jonathan, b. Feb. 22, J(i74 ; m. Mary Fay. 

David, b. April 12, 1(178 ; resided in Wcstboro', near the Reform School. 

\(krshom, b. Fob. 23, KiHO; d. Jan. 3, 17-J!>. 

Elnathnn, b. March 7, 1G83 ; m. Rethiah Ward, moved to Conn. 

Mary, b. Oct. 2(J, 1G87 ; m. Jonas Houghton, Lancaster. 



John Brigham m. 1st Sarah who was the mother of his chil- 
dren; she d. about 1G!I8; and he m. 2d Deborah , who d. Feb. 7, 

171G ; and he m. 3d Sarah Bowker, May 22, 1717, whom ho probably 
survived. He. d. Sept. IG, 1728, aged 84 years. Dr. Brigham, as he 
is frequently designated, seems to liavc been a man of character, and 
of more than ordinary education for that day. He conunenccd busi- 
ness for himself by erecting a saw-mill near the site of one now 
owned by Haynes & Bush, on Howard Brook, near the centre of 
Northborough. Here he lived in a small cabin for several years, 
remote from any other white man's habitation, tending his saw-mill ; 
until the fear of the savages induced him to flee to a place of safety. 
On leaving Northboro', he probably went to Cambridge, and after the 
war, he located himself in Sudbury, where he was a selectman and a 
representative. He is said to have spent his last days with his daugh- 
ter in Northboro'. 

Sarah, b. March 27, 1G74 ; m. Goodnow. 

Mary, b. May G, 1G78; m. Gcrshom Fay and resided in Northboro'. 
According to a reliable tradition, she and Miss Goodnow went one 
morning, after the men had dispersed to their work, into the field to 
gather herbs. Here they saw a body of Indians rushing from a 
thicket towards them, and thoy fled for the garrison. Miss Good- 
now, being lame, was soon overtaken, seized, dragged into the woods, 
and barbarously murdered, where her mangled remains were found 
and interred. Mrs. Fay succeeded in reaching the garrison, and 
fastening the door before she was overtaken. Here she found one 
soldier, who with her help soon discharged all the muskets lefl by 
43 



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the men, when she devoted her dexterity to loading, and he his skill 
to firinp^, till the alarm drew their men, and the ruthless enemy fled. 

John, b. Nov. 1680 ; m. Martha , and resided in Sud. 

Hannah, b. March 27, 1683 ; m. Oliver Ward, of Sud. 

Thomas, b. May 6, 1687 ; m. Elizabeth Bowker, settled in Sud. 

Mttrcy, m. March 23, 1715, Ebenezer Perry. 

Samud, m. Abigail Moore, Aug. 23, 1716. 

The descendants of John Brigham did not settle in Marl. 



Samuel Brigham m. Elizabeth Howe. He d. July, 171.3, and she 
d. July 26, 1739, aged 79. He resided about a mile and a quarter 
east of the old Meeting-house Common, near where Daniel Brigham 
now resides, where he erected a tannery, occupied by his descendants 
to this day. He was a large landholder. 

Elizabeth, b. March 24, 1685; m. Oct. 16, 1711, Samuel Robinson. 

Hepsihah, b. Jan. 25, 1686 ; m. 1719, John Maynard. 

\Sainud, b. Jan. 25, 1689 ; m. Abigail Moore. 

Lydia, b. March 6^.1691 ; m. May 5, 1711, Jonathan Howe. -^ 

\jedediah, b. June 8, 1693 ; m. Bethiah Howe. 

\Jothiim, b. Dec. 23, 1695 ; d. Nov. 23, 1759. 

\Tiinolhij, b. Oct. 10, 1698 ; m. Martha Johnson. 

\ciuirks, b. Dec. 30, 1700; m. Mary Peters. 

Pases, b. July 10, 1703. 

Antipas, b. Oct. 16, 1706 ; d. April 23, 1746, unm. 



Nathan Brigham m. Elizabeth Howe, who d. March 29, 1733, aged 
69 ; found d. kneeling beside her chair in her house. He m. 2d, Me- 
hetabel Parke. He d. Feb. 16, 1647, aged 76 years. He was a Cap- 
tain, and filled many town offices. 



JVathan, b. Nov. 28, 1693 ; m. Dinah Rice. When Southboro' was 
erected into a town, he fell within its borders, where his descendants 
were highly respectable. A grandson of his. Col. Ephraim, b. 
Oct. 9, 1771, r. near Gates's Pond in Marl., and had a family. 

\Thomae, b. Feb. 22, 1695; m. Sarah Stratton. 

Tahiiha, b. Aug. 20, 1698 ; d. Feb. 6, 1731, unm. 

Elizahdh, b. Jan. 4, 1700; m. April 25, 1722, John Stow. 

Surah, b. Dec. 14, 1701 ; probably m. Uriah Hager. 

Zipporah, b. Sept. 14, 1704; m. John Warren. 

Hannah, b. March 10, 1706; in. Jabez Rice. 

\Ephraim, b. Jan. 20, 1708 ; m. Hannah Willard, of Grafton. 



Jonathan Brigham m. March 26, 1696, Mary Fay, dau. of John 
and Mary. Tradition says, that while at work in the woods, he dis- 
covered an Indian lurking near him ; he seized his gun, took delib- 
erate aim and fired — the Indian firing at the same instant. The Indian 
fell, mortally wounded, but Brigham escaped unhurt. 

Keziah, b. 1697; m. Dec. 19, 1718, Elias Koyes. 

Zeruiah, b. Oct. 9, 1698 ; m. March 16, 1724, Ebenezer Bragg. 

Mary, b. Oct.*27, 1700. 

Rtd'h, b. April 30, 1704 ; m. Feb. 20, 1726, Joseph Howe. 

Thankful, b. Feb. 4, 1706 ; d. Sept. 23, 1706. 

^Jonathan, b. March 14, 1707 ; m. Damaris Rice, and d. 1768. 

Thmikful, b. April 21, 1709; d. at South, unm., 1796, aged 86. 

Jesse, b. July 10, 1710 ; m. Bethiah Rice, and d. 1796 ; r. Westboro'. 

\Jod, b. Oct. 2, 1714 ; m. Mary Church. 

Januis, b. Oct. 7, 1717 ; m. Hannah Rice, and settled at Brookficld. 



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Gershom Brigham m, Mchctabel 
a land surveyor. Ho d. Jan. 3, 1749. 



He was a pliysician and 



Martha, b. Oct. 6, 1704 ; m. Joseph Big'elow, 
^Joseph, b. April 21, 1706; m. Comfort Bigelow. 
J]bigail, b. Nov. 25, 1708 ; m. John Snow. 

Gershom, b. Nov. 4, 1712; m. Mary , and resides in West. 

\Benjamin, h. Feb. 19, 1715; ni. Hannah . 



Samuel Brigham m. Aug. 23, 1716, Abigail Moore, who d. Nov. 
20, 1731. He was living in 1747. He was one of forty persons who, 
in 1727, purchased Grafton of the Indians. He resided in the south 
part of Marl., and was a prominent man in the town. 

Samuel, b. 1717, and d. same year. 

Si/billah, h. Oct. 1.5, 1718; m. Zachariah Maynard, at Sud. 

Mary, h. April 13, 1720. 58 Mignil, b. Dec. 10, 1721. 

\Samuel, b. March 3,1723 ; m. 1st, Elizabeth Ward, and 2d, Ann Gott. 

Phinelias, h. Dec. 18, 1725^; d. Aug. 23, 1736. 

\Un'ah, b. Sept. 10, 1727; m. Sarah Gott. 

\ George, b. March 17, 1730; m. Mary Bragg. 



Jedediah Brigham m. May 18, 1720, Bethiah Howe, dau. of .loseph 
and Dorothy, who d. June 23, 1756. He d. May 21, I7()3. He settled 
on the homestead, and carried on the tannery. He owned lands in 
Princeton, Bolton, and Lancaster. 



Dorothj, b. March 2, 1721 ; m. Thomas Howe, at Sud. 
^Solonion, b. May 25, 1723; m. Aug. 1, 1754, Martlia Boyd. 
Francis, b. Aug. 13, 1725 ; m. Phebe Wood, and moved to New Marl. 
Lucy, b. 1727 ; m. - — Bailey. 67 Bethiah, b. I72!>, d. 1715. 
Stephen, b. 1732 ; m. Betsey Weeks. He resided in Princeton. 
tWms/oM), b. Aug. 30, 1736; d. Aug. 6. 1794. 



JoTHAM Brigham m. Abigail , who d. March 24, 1768. 

Nov. 23, 1759, aged 64. 

Bett)/, b. Nov. 15, 1719; m, 1742, Jonathan Stratton. 

^Mraham, b. Feb. 25, 1721 ; m. Phebe Martin. 

Edmund, b. Nov. 15, 1724. 

Oliver, b. Sept. 4, 1727 ; m. Aug. 9, 1757, Ruth Ward. 

\Asa, b. Nov. 9, 1729 ; m. Elizabeth Warren. 

Persis, b. Jan. 2, 1734. 

Abigail, b. July 9, 1737; d. Sept. 11, 1740. 

\Antipas, b. May 25, 1 740 ; m. Catharine Woods. 

Abigail, b. April 22, 1745. 



lied. 



Timothy Brigham m. Martha Johnson, who d. 1757, and he m. 
Mrs. Sarah (Prentice) Sniitl), dau. of Rev. Mr. Prentice, of Lancaster. 
He resided in that part of Marl, which now constitutes South. He 
was a distinguished man in the town, being 24 years treasurer, and 
an equal number of years selectman. He was probably an officer in 
the French war, and rose to the rank of Col. in the Militia. 



Charles Brigham m. Mary Peters, of R. I. He moved to Graf- 
ton, where he became one of their most prominent citizens. He was 
a magistrate, and represented the town in the General Court. Wil- 
liam Brigham, Esq., of Boston, a lawyer of eminence, is a descendant 
of this family. 



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Thomas Brigham m. Jan. 25, 1720, Sarah Stratton, who d. 1775. 
He. d. May 25, 1705. He resided in the southwest part of the town, 
where his house is still standing, near that of Mr. Alden Brigham. 

Aaron, b. March 17, 1720; m. Elizabeth Brown, r. in Grafton. 
Lydia, b. March 14, 1722 ; m. Amariah Bigelow, April 14, 1747. 
Ezekicl, b. Feb. 14, 1724 ; was twice m. Settled in Grafton. 

Elisha, b. Nov. 25, 1726; m. Sarah . Settled in Grafton. 

\ltlmmnr, b. Oct. 6, 1729 ; was twice married. 

Sarah, b. March 12, 1732 ; d. 17G5, unm. 

Thomas, b. April 23, 1734 ; d. 1740. 

fPa?/./, b. March 26, 1737 ; m. Elizabeth Rice. 

Ephraim, b. 1739 ; d. 1740. 88 Mner, b. 1742: d. 1746. 



Ephraim Brigham m. April 1.5, 1720, Hannah Willard, of Grafton. 
He resided near the Pond, where Mr. Joel Gleason now resides. He 
had two children who d. young. He bore the title of Capt., a desig- 
nation which at that day implied that ho was one of the substantial 
men of the town. In 1771 he bequeathed to the town £133, to be 
placed in tlie care of the selectmen, for the time being. The pro- 
ceeds of £22 to bo paid to the minister for preaching in person or by 
proxy, an annual Lecture to promote the present and future improve- 
ment of the young; and the income of the remainder to be expended 
in supporting a school in the middle of the town, and distinct from the 
District Schools, for the benefit of all the children in the town. From 
this bequest has arisen what has been familiarly known as the " Brig- 
ham Lecture," and the " Brigham School." 



Jonathan Brigham m. April 3, 1733, Damaris Rice. 
4, 1768. He was a surveyor. 



He d. Jan. 



jMah, b. Nov. 24, 1734 ; m. July 5, 1758, Miriam Allen. 

Man/, b. April 25 , m. 1763, Jacob Switcher. 

Matthias, b. April 20, 1742. 92 Damaris, b. April 15, 1745. 



Joel Brigham m. March 17, 1741, Mary Church. He was select- 
man in 1763 and 1773. He kept a public house in Marl, fifty years. 
He had a family of 7 children in Marl, and moved to N. Y. 

] William, b. March 20, 1742; m. Sept. 4, 1764, Betty Stratton. 

Zeruiah, b. June 10, 1745 ; d. 1746. 

Zeruiah, b. July 5, 1747 ; m. 1764, Adam Maynard. 

Joel, b. April 5, 1751 ; m. Jan. 2, 1776, Caty Howe, and had Mary, 

b. 1776; Mary, b. 1778 ; Charles, b. 1779; and Susanna, b. 1780— 

all d. young. He was commissary in the army. 
j Jonathan, b. Oct. 29, 1754 ; m. Jan. 5, 1779, Lydia Stevens. 
John, b. April 16, 1758 ; m. July 20, 1780, Abigail Williams. 
Samud, b. Dec. 3, 1760. 



Joseph Brigham m. Aug. 26, 1728, Comfort Bigelow, dau. of John 
Bigelow, who previous to the birth of this dau. was taken by the In- 
dians, and carried into captivity ; and after his return he named his first 
daughter " Freedom," and his second " Comfort." She d. 1755, and 
he m. 1751, Ruth Ward, wid. of Elisha Ward. She d. 1786 ; and 
he d. July 29, 1786. He was a prominent man in Marl, and had a 
family of 1 1 children. 

Mehetahel, b. July 14, 1729; m. 1749, Samuel Jones. 
Sarah, b. May 13, 1731 ; m. 175.5, Benjamin Tainter. 



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Lavina, b. July 10, 1733 ; m. 1757, Thaddeus Howo, 
Joseph, h. June 14, 1735 ; d. July 17, 1742. 
Comfort, b. July 29, 1737 ; d. July 17, 1742. 
Martha, b. Sept. 9, 1739 ; m. July 20, 17(!3, Daniel Barnes, Jr. 
Stephen, b. Oct. 15, 1741 ; m. 17()4, Jemima Snow, r. at Boylston. 
\Joscph, b. Sept. 27, 1743; m. March 11, 17<;(), Lydia Barnes. 
Comfort, b. Aug. 26, 1745; m. March 14, 1770, Daniel Stevens. 
Jonah, b. Nov. 19, 1747; m. 1771, Sarah Walker. He d. Dec. 

1827, without issue. 
Lucy, b. Aug. 19, 1752; m. Samuel Stratton ? 



Benjamin Brigham m. Hannah 



Benjamin, b. March 11, 1742; grad. H. C. 17(14. Settled as a clergy- 
man at Fitzwilliam, N. II. ; d. 1799. 

jCiilfh, b. Nov. 20, 1743 ; m. Hannah Barnes. 

lienajah, b. March 15, 174(); m. Abigail Bent. 

Hannah, b. May 1, 1748; m. June 21, 17(l!>, Hezekiah Maynard. 

(hr.ihom, b. June 27, 17.50; m. Sarah Allen, r. at North. 

Jf'arren, b. Nov. 1(), 1753; m. Lucy Marble, and d. 1840 without 
issue. She d. Nov. 21, 1758, aged 90. 

Lydia, b. Feb. 28, 1758. 118 Levina, b. Sept. 2, 17G0. 



Samuel Brigfiam m. Nov. 24, 1747, Pilizabeth Woods, who d. 
without issue, and he m. Jan. 9, 1752, Anna (lott, dan. of Benjamin 
Golt. lie d. 175G, aged 33, and his wid. m. Capt. Maynard, of West- 
boro', and d. July G, 1799. Samuel Brigham was a pliysician. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 11, 1752. 

Jinn, b. Oct. 29, 1753; m. May 21, 1772, Isaac Davis, of North., and 
had 4 sons. Phinehas, Isaac, Joseph, and John, who has reflected 
great honor upon the State and Nation, by filling, with distin- 
guished ability, the offices of Governor of the Commonwealth, and 
Senator of the United States. 

Susanna, b. April 12, 1755; m. Oct. 4, 1770, Elisha Hudson. 

Samuel, b. Aug. 23, 175G, after the death of his father. He entered 
Dartmouth College before the breaking out of the Revolution. But 
the calls of patriotism induced him to join the standard of Washing- 
ton, which he did in 1777, in the character of paymaster, and was 
present at the execution of Major Andre. He returned to College 
and grad. in 1779, studied medicine with Dr. Stephen Ball, of 
Northboro', and commenced practice in Shrewsbury, now Boylston. 
Owing to a casualty, he was forced in a great degree to abandon 
his profession. He was a magistrate for many years. He m. Mary 
Ball, sister to his medical preceptor. 



Uriah Brigham m. 1750, Sarah B. Gott. He lived in the south 
part of Marl, in the style of the English gentry, receiving the visits 
of the elite far and near ; he kept an open house, and showed a hospi- 
tality without measure or stint. He had 11 children. 

\John Gott, b. Feb. 8, 1751 ; m. JNIary Collins. 

Henry, b. Oct. 2G, 1752 ; m. Anna Phillips. 

Sarah, b. June 22, 1755; m. March 14, 1782, Dr. Nathaniel Gott, of 

Jfenham, settled at Guildhall, Vt., removed to Cooperstown, N. Y. 
Uriah, b. July 11, 1757; m. Elizabeth Fay, r. at Bakersfield, Vt. 
Abigail, b. Dec. 31, 1759 ; m. David Wait, r. at Sterling. 
Persis, b. April 7, 1762; m. Alexander Watson, r. Frankfort, N. Y. 



338 



129 
130 
131 
132 

133 



24-G2- 



02-134 
135 
13(J 
137 
138 
131) 
140 
141 
142 
143 
144 
145 
14(5 
147 
148 
149 



26-G4- 



G4-150 
151 
152 
153 
154 
155 



20-09- 



09-156 
- 157 
158 
159 
100 
101 
102 



Edward, b. June 13, 1764 ; m. Beulah Hawos, r. Petersham, d. 1820. 

jVnthaniel, b. Aug. 17, 1700 ; d. young. 

Robert, b. Dec. 14, 1709; d. young. 

Jhme, b. Aug. 10, 1773; ni. Charles Safford, r. Lancaster, d. without 

issue. 
Robert Breck, b. June 2, 1770; d. unm. 



George Brigham m. Mary Bragg, dau. of Ebenezer Bragg, of 
Shrewsbury, and d. Feb. 4, 1822. He resided first in Marl, and then 
moved to South. They had 10 children, of whom they buried in 
1771, and 2 in 1775. 

Phinehas, b. May 25, 1755 ; d. July 3, same year. 
George, b. July 22, 1750; d. Aug. 2(5, 1782. 

Phinehas, b. Oct. 7, 1757; m. Susanna Howe, of Ilopkinton, r. South. 
Timothy, b. Feb. 11, 1759; d. 1804, unm. 
Lovice, b. Sept. 27, 1700; d. Sept. 18, 1771. 
Jlshbel, b. March 3, 1702; d. Sept. 22, 1771. 
Mary, b. Dec. 18, 1703; d. Aug. 27, 1771. 
Tlumkful, b. May 7, 1705 ; m. Capt. Daniel Brigham. 
Zeruiah, b. April 0, 1707; d. Sept. 11, 1771. 
Samuel, b. Jan. 27, 1709 ; d. Sept. 1, 1771. 
Stephen, b. Jan. 7, 1771 ; d. March 3, 1771. 
\Ashbel S., b. March 2, 1772 ; m. Persis Brigham. 
Mary L., b. May 0, 1773 ; d. Sept. 2, 1775. 
Stephen, b. Aug. 8, 1774 ; d. Sept. 11, 1775. 
Frances, b. Dec. 24, 1776 ; m. Nathan Brigham. 
JVilliam, b. April 2, 1779; m. Mary Graves; was mortally wounded 
at the battle of Tippecanoe, and d. Dec. 8, 1811, without issue. 



Solomon Brigham m. Aug. 1, 1754, Martha Boyd. She d. and he 

m. 2d, Sally , who d. Jan. 14, 1797. He d. Feb. 1, 1807, in his 

84th year. He settled near Feltonville, where Charles, his grandson, 
now resides. 

\Loveivell, b. Dec. 1, 1754 ; m. Betty Rice. 

Bethiah, b. July 31, 1750 ; d. unm. at the advanced age of 92. 

Charles, b. Aug. 20, 1758 ; d. young. 

Timothy, b. Nov. 22, 1700; d. Nov. 15, 1811, unm. 

Artemas, b. Jan. 24, 1703 ; d. young. 

\Ivory, b. April 20, 1705 ; m. Sally VVilkins. 



WiNSLOw Brigham m. July 29, 1700, Elizabeth Harrington, dau. 
of Daniel and Mary Harrington. She d. Oct. 25, 1815, aged 78. He 
d. Aug. 29, 1791. He resided on the old homestead, and carried on 
the tannery. He was one of the most popular and influential men of 
his day among his fellow townsmen, filling the office of town clerk 
thirteen years, being often elected selectman, and representing the 
town in the General Court several years. 



\Daniel, b. Dec. 25, 1700; m. Thankful Brigham. 
\Aaro7i, b. Nov. 22, 1702 ; m. Elizabeth Barnes. 
Jedediah, b. Jan. 5, 1705; d. Sept. 3, 1700. 
\Jedediah, b. Sept. 15, 1700 ; m. Lydia Boyd. 
Elizabeth, b. March 5, 1709; m. Dea. William Barnes. 
Jiinariah, b. May 31, 1771 ; d. 1798, in Conn., unm. 
John Winslow, b. Jan. 10, 1774; d. 1820, at Norfolk, Va., ra. Hannah 
Lewis, had several children, all of whom d. in their minority. 



839 



]G3 
104 
105 



27-71- 



71-100 

107 

108 
109 



27-74- 



74-170 
171 
172 
173 



27-77- 



77-174 
170 
177 



33-83- 



83-178 
J 711 
180 
181 
182 
183 
184 



33-80- 



8()-185 
180 

187 
188 
189 

190 
191 
192 
193 



Artemas, b. May 13, 1770 ; m. 1798, Lydia Brigham. 
Lucy, b. June 28, 1779 ; ni. Dea. Eli Rice. 
Lydia, b. Jan. 7, 1782; d, Aug. 7, 1784. 



Abraham Brigham m. 1752, Phebe Martin. He d. Nov. 10, 1788, 
aged 08. She d. Jan. 17, 1800, aged 78. 



Lucy, b. Oct. 30, 1753; m. Nov. 7, 1771, David Wyman, r. Marble- 
head. 
\Forhmalns, b. Sept. 29, 1759; m. Martha Barnes. 
Anna, b. March 1, 17(53 ; m. Samuel Barnes, r. Warwick. 
Gardner, b. April 30, 1700; d. Dec. 29, 1779. 



Asa Brigham m. Elizabeth Warren, dau. of John and Zipporah, 
b. March 31, 1734. He d. Nov. 18, 1806, aged 77. She d. Aug. 15, 
1807. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 18, 1754 ; m. Francis Stevens. 

\Leivis, b. March 24, 1750; ni. Mary Rice, dau. of Benjamin. 

\Jol1uim, b. Nov. 18, 1701 ; m. Lucy Thompson. 

Hastings, b. March 9, 1704 ; d. at Marl. Aug. 28, 1805, unm. 



Antipas Brigham m. Catharine Woods, dau. of Benjamin and 
Elizabeth. He d. June 20, 1791, aged 51. 

CatJianne, b. Feb. 10, 1707. 175 Abigail, b. May 22, 1708. 

Sahri7ia, b. Dec. 22, 1770 ; m. Aug. 1, 1792, Daniel Rice. 
Lucretia, b. Oct. 12, 1773. 



Ithamar Brigham m. Sept. 13, 1753, Ruth Ward, who d. May 29, 
17.50, and he m. March 29, 1758, Mary Beaman, b. December 1, 1734, 
and d. May 20, 1813, his wid. aged 78. He was selectman ten years, 
and bore the honorable title of Capt. He lived, and d. 1784, where 
Mr. Alden Brigham now resides. 

Rjith, b. Sept. 17, 1750 ; d. Sept. 20, 1797. 

\Ulutmar, b. Nov. 7, 1758; m. Catharine Barnes. 

Daniel, b. Nov. 15, 1700 ; moved to Maine, and d. about 1805. 

Silas, b. Oct. 21, 1703; m. Persis Stow, r. Southboro'. 

Ahner, b. May 20, 1700 ; d. July 5, 17()0. 

jAbncr, b. Dec. 21, 1708 ; m. Dorothy Wood, dau. of Peter Wood. 

Abralmm, b. Nov. 14, 1771 ; d. unm. 



Paul Brigham m. Aug. 9, 1757, Eliza Rice. He was a Capt. 
the Militia. He d. June 4, 1777. She d. June 3, 1785. 



Persis, b. March 17, 1700 ; d. June 17, 1700. 

Paid, b. June 17, 1701 ; m. Fanny Brigham. He was a soldier of the 

Revolution. In 1803 moved to St. Albans, Vt., where he d. 
Samuel, b. Sept. 14, 1702 ; m. Asouath Bailey, r. at Berlin. 
Miriam, b. Jan. 9, 17(54 ; d. Jan. 10, 1770. 
Thomas, b. Dec. 25, 1705; m. May 0, 1799, Azubah Babcock, r. 

Berlin. 
Aaron, b. Feb. 7, 1708; d. 1771. 
Sarah, b. Oct. 10, 17(59; d. 1771. 
Pierpont, b. Nov. 22, 1772 ; d. 1775. 
Eli, b. Oct. 10, 1773 ; d. 1775. 



340 



45- SO- 



SO- 104 
19(3 
107 
108 



48- 03- 



03-100 
200 
202 

48- 07- 

07-203 
205 

207 
200 

51-107- 
107-211 

54-1 12- 



112-213 
214 
215 
210 

217 

218 

Gl-123- 



123-210 

220 

02-145- 

145-221 
222 
223 
224 
225 
22G 

(i4-150- 



150-227 

228 
220 



Noah Brigham m. 1st, July 5, 1758, Miriam Allen, and 2d, May 
10, 1771, Martha Tomblin. He d. Feb. 3, 1805, aged 77. She d. 
May 27, 1813. 

Damaris, b. April 24, 1750. 195 ..inne, b. June 25, 1761. 

Matthias Rice, b. Jan. 4, 1765; m. Sept. 15, 1701, Anna Gleason. 
Lijdia, b. Oct. 28, 1767 ; m. Oct. 12, 1707, James Wright. 
Miriam, b. Oct. 30, 1772; m. April 17, 1792, Simeon Cunningham. 

William Brigham in. Sept. 4, 1764, Betty Stratton. 

Lydia, b. May 27, 1765 ; m. Nov. 3, 1785, Moses Eames. 

Belli/, b. Feb. 9, 1767. 201 William, b. Dec. 27, 1760 ; d, young. 

JVilliam, b. June 12, 1772. 



Jonathan Brigham m. Jan. 5, 1779, Lydia Stevens, dau. of Samuel 
and Lucy, b. May 8, 1758. About 1705, they moved to the State of 
New York, where he d. 1848. 



Stephen, b. Aug. 24, 1780. 
Haven, b. May 23, 1785. 
i>yr/fa, b. Dec. 30, 1780. 
miliam, b. Sept. 23, 1793. 



204 Susanna, b. Feb. 12, 1783. 
206 IVindsor, b. Oct. 1, 1787. 
208 Jonathan, b. Oct. 13, 1701. 
210 Edmund, b. 1706. 



Joseph Brigham m. March 11, 1766, Lydia Barnes. 
Lijdia, b. Aug. 16, 1766. 212 Lucy, b. Dec. 31, 1771. 



Caleb Brigham m. Sept. 3, 1766, Hannah Barnes, dau. of Daniel 
and Zeruiah. He d. Sept. 13, 1820, aged 'id). 

Hannah, b. April 17, 1767; m. Esquire Gates, of New Marlborough. 

Dorothy, b. Aug. 27, 1 770 ; d. unm. 

\Willard, b. Oct. 7, 1772; m. Betsey Russell. 

Francis, b. Aug. 25, 1776; d, 1706, a student in Harvard College. 

]Caleh, b. Dec." 26, 1778; m. Martha Brigham. 

David, b. Marcli 8, 1781 ; m. Betsey Trowbridge, moved to N. Y. 



John Gott Brigham m. Mary CoUens. He d. April 30, 1816, 
aged 65. 

Hepzibah, b. Oct. 30, 1794. 

John Gott, b. Aug. 2, 1706; m. Jan. 9, 1821, Lucy Howe, r. Con. 



Ash BEL S. Brigham m. Persis Brigham, dau. of Elijah, of South. 

Jlshbcl, b. July 1, 1800 ; m. Lydia H. Russell. 

Varnmn, b. July 8, 1802 ; m. Mary D. Bigelow, and d. 1848. 

mthum., b. June 24, 1804 ; d. 1808. 

Charles, b. Sept. 26, 1806 ; m. Jane Day. 

George, b. April 10, 1811 ; m. Abby Mallard. 

Mary, b. March 12, 1815; m. Jonathan Jenks. 



LovEWELL Brigham m. Jan. 9, 1791, Betty Rice. He d. April, 
1824. His wid. is still living at Saxonville. 

Sally, b. Feb. 22, 1701 ; ni. John Pierce, resides at Jaffrey, N. H. 
JVahby, b. Dec. 27, 1792; m. Nathan Fuller, resides at Saxonville. 
Miriam, b. June 17, 1704 ; m. Elnathan Polly, r. at Waltham. 



341 



230 

y;u 

23-2 
233 
234 
235 
230 



G4-155- 



155-237 

238 
239 
240 
241 
242 
243 



09-150- 



I5(;-244 
245 

240 
247 

248 

249 
250 
251 
252 
253 
254 
255 
250 



09- J 57- 



157-257 

258 
259 
200 
201 



Jfrtemas, b. April 27, 1790 ; m. Mary Arnold, and d. 1839. 
So/jJiia, b. Nov. 3, 1797; d. May 7, J802, from a casualty. 

Piitii/, b. Oct. 29, 1799 -, ni. 1st, Stillnian Cary, 2d, Safford. 

Li/(li<i, b. Aug. 28, 1801 ; m. Dexter Bigolow, r. at Ashland. 
Siephcn, b. March 13, 1804 ; d. May 28, 1800, from a scald. 
Eliza, h. May 13, 1807; m. John Works, r. at Ashland. 
Salo7ne, 



Ivory Buigham m. Feb. 19, 1800, Sally Wilkins, dau. of Edward 
Wilkins. He d. June 4, 1853, aged 83. 

Betsei/, b. Aug. 26, 1800; m. Phinehas Haskell. 

Edward, b. June 20, 1802; d. July 31, 1803. 

Jfillinm, b. May 20, 1804 ; m. Harriet Randall, and d. 1839. 

Solomon, b. Nov. 9, 1800; ni. Lucy Ball, and d. Jan. 0, 1843. 

Francis, b. April 3, 1811 ; d. 1813. 

Francis, b. April 12, 1813 ; ni. Jan. 5, 1835, Sophia Gleason. 

Charles, b. Dec. 11, 1815; m. Sarah Barrett. 

Capt. Francis Brigham resides at Fcltonville, where he is exten- 
sively engaged in the shoe manufacture, employing some three hun- 
dred hands. He has represented the town in the Legislature. He is 
now living with his .3d wife. 



Daniel Brigham m. Aug. 29, 1782, Thankful Brigham, dau. of 
George and Mary Brigham. He d. Oct. 11, 1818, aged 57. She d. 
Dec. 14, 1824. Ca])t. Daniel, like his father, filled every office in the 
gift of the town. He was selectman eighteen years, treasurer eleven 
years, town clerk twenty years, and for a long period represented the 
town in the General Court. 

Manj, h. Jan. 12, 1783 ; m. April 10, 1803, Capt. John Stevens. 
Geo'rs;e, b. Oct. 19, 1784; m. June 11, 1810, Betsey Morse. She d. 

and he m. 2d, Margaret Sliattuck ; resides at Groton. 
Daniel, Capt., b. Aug. 7, 1780 ; m. May 27, 1810, Nancy Gates. 
Dexter, also b. Aug. 7, 1780 ; d. unm. 1838, at Seneca Fulls, N. Y. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 1, 1788 ; m. June 10, 1812, Abraham Gates ; m. 2d, 

Sept. 13, 1831, Dea. Stephen R. Phelps. 
Thankful, b. Feb. 15, 1791; m. Dec. 9, 1813, Rufus Stow. 
IVilliam, b, Aug. 3, 1793; m. April 3, 1810, Sophia Sawyer, r. Dracut. 
Winslow, b. May 29, 1795 ; m. July 27, 1817, Elizabeth Larkin. 
Jhnariah, b. July 2.3, 1797 ; d. unm. 1820, at Bermuda. 
Freeman, b. May 4, 1800 ; ni. Harriet Gilson, r. Cambridge. 
Charlotte, b. June 1, 1802; m. May 19, 1725, Capt. Thaddeus Howe. 
Harriet, b. Dec. 4, 1804 ; m. Jan. 1, 1820, Jabez S. Witherbee. 
Laura Jinn, b. March 17, 1807 ; m. Jesse Perry, r. Shrewsbury. 



Aaron Brigham m. Sept. 23, 1785, Elizabeth R. Barnes, dau. of Col. 
Edward Barnes. He was for many years assessor, selectman, &ic., and 
a Capt. in the militia. He d. March 23, 1831, aged 08. 



Lydia, b. Feb. 5, 1780; m. Oct. 2, 1808, Windsor Howe, r. Lowell. 
Sarah, b. Dec. 9, 1787 ; d. July 4, 1791. 
Bcltij, b. Aug. 12, 1789 ; ni. March 23, 1809, Jonathan Rice. 
Sail}/, b. March 25, 1792 ; m. Capt. Abraham Howe, r. Lowell. 
Jiaron, Col., b. March 20, 1798; m. Jan. 9, 1821, Sally Fay. 
44 



342 



69-159- 



159-262 
263 
264 
265 
26(5 
267 
268 
269 
270 
271 



71-167- 



167-272 
273 
274 
275 

276 
277 
278 
279 
280 
281 



74-171- 



171-282 



283 
284 

285 
286 



Jedediah Brigham m. Lydia Boyd, dau. of William Boyd. He 
was often employed in public alfairs, represented the town, and rose 
to the rank of Major. She d. April 28, 1824. 

Betsey W., b. Nov. 28, 1791 ; m. June 1, 1813, Samuel Warren. 
Lydia, b. Oct. 28, 1793; m. May 8, 1816, Lyman Morse. 
Lucy, b. May 2, 1796; m. Dec. 28, 1819, Timothy Patch, r. Stow. 
Jane, b. April 23, 1798 ; m. Lyman Bigelow, r. Boxboro'. 
Hannah L., b. Oct. 3, 1802 ; m. May 8, 1823, George Peters. 
Ashley, b. Oct. 9, 1804; m. May 11, 1825, Mary Bigelow. 
Jedediah, b. Aug. 11, 1806 ; d. in Marl. unra. 
Joel, b. Dec. 16, 1808; m. Lydia Dickenson. 
IfiUiam Pitt, b. Aug. 30, 1811 ; m. Lucinda Baker. 
Augusta, b. March 16, 1814; m. John W. Stevens. 



FoRTCNATUs Brigham m. Aug. 28, 1783, Martha Barnes, dau. of 
Daniel and Martha. 



Polly, b. Nov. 3, 1783 ; m 
Phebe, b. July 4, 1785 ; m. 
Abraham, b. July 11, 1788 
JVancy, b. June 29, 1791 ; 
Samuel, h. April 24, 1794 ; 
Samuel, b. Sept. 20, 1796 ; 
Martin, b. Aug. 25, 1799 ; 
Lincoln, b. May 13, 1803 ; 
Leonard, b. Oct. '8, 1806; 
Martha, h. Aug. 20, 1809 ; 



Moses Brigham, r. Binghamton, N. Y. 

George Chase, r. at North. 

; m. Betsey Wright, r. at North. 

m. Joel Brigham. 

d. Dec. 13, 1795. 

m. Mary Newton, r. Binghamton, N. Y. 
m. Mary Barnes, r. Palmer. 

m. 1822, Susan A. Maynard. 
m. Eliza Bremer, r. Worcester. 

m. Moses W. Maynard. 



Lewis Brigham m. Sept. 18, 1786, Mary Rice, dau. of Benjamin 
and Susanna Rice. She d. suddenly, June 15, 1797, aged 30. He d. 
Feb. 22, 1803. 

Asa, b. Aug. 31, 1788; m. Rebecca Babcock, at Framingham. Bereft 
of his mother at the age of nine years, and of his father at the age 
of fourteen, he was apprenticed to a trade, and set up business for 
himself at Lunenburg, where he rose to the rank of Major in the 
militia. Having the misfortune to be burnt out, he was induced to 
remove to Louisiana, in 1816. Subsequently he went to Texas, to 
which place he moved his family in 1831. In the war which en- 
sued between Texas and Mexico, he took an active part, and served 
as commissary to the army. He was one of the signers of the 
Declaration of Texan Independence, and afterwards became Treas- 
urer of the Republic ; an office which he held up to the time of his 
death, which occurred in 1844. A Texan paper, at that period, 
pays this just tribute to his memory. " Few men of such un- 
imposing bearing, and modest, unpretending demeanor, ever filled 
a larger share of public confidence than the subject of this notice. 
Holding the keys of the Treasury of the Republic, almost from its 
commencement, we presume no man can be found who would dare 
to question his integrity. As a private citizen, in all the relations 
of friend, neighbor, relative, husband and father, his life was beyond 
reproach." He had a family of tliree children, the youngest of which, 
Benjamin, was slain in the battle of St. Jacinto, on his 21st birth-day. 

Sukey, b. April 12, 1790; m. Stephen Howe, Jan. 29, 1809. 

Sally, b. June 5, 1792 ; m. Rufus Bruce. 

Mary, b. Aug. 16, 1794 ; m. Amory Howe, r. New York. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 2, 1796; m. Weeks Allen, r. Amherst. 



343 



74-172- 

172-287 

288 
28«J 
290 
2111 
2!t2 
2l);3 
2U4 

83-179- 



179-295 
296 

297 
298 

299 
300 
301 

83-183- 



183-302 
303 
304 
305 
300 



307 
308 
309 



112-215- 

215-310 
312 
313 
314 
315 
316 

317 
318 

112-217- 



217-319 
320 



JoTHAM Brioham 111. Dec, 1, 1784, Lucy Thompson, of Sudbury. 
He (1. March 26, 1810. 

Betsey, b. July 30, 1785 ; m. James Mallard, r. Lancaster. 

Lucy, b. Jan. 15, 1787 ; m. Edward Barnes. 

Otis, b. Oct. 8, 1788 ; m. Lucy Stratton. 

Henry, b. May 3, 1790; m. Mary Hobart, r. Abington. 

John, b. Aug. 1, 1792; m. Ruth VViiislow, r, Abington. 

Hastings, b. Aug. 4. 1794 ; m. 1821, Nancy Spear. 

Sophia, b. July 11, 1796; m. 1817, Mark P'ay. 

Charles L., b. Oct. 14, 1800 ; m. Roanna V. Atkins, r. Dorchester. 



Ithamar Brigham m. Nov. 26, 1783, Catharine Barnes, dau. of 
Solomon and Juditli Barnes. She d. April 13, 1804, and he d. March 
12, 1836. 

Levi, b. May 1, 1784; moved to Raymond, Me. 

Aaron, b. Dec. 29, 1785; m. 1808, Comfort Valentine; he was for 

many years a merchant in Boston, now r. in Lexington. 
Moses, b. July 22, 1788; m. Susan Fosgate, of Berlin. 
Joims, b. Aug. 29, 1790, became an officer in the U. S. Army in the 

war of 1812, and d. Feb. 9, 1822, in New York. 
Eli, b. July 18, 1794 ; m. 1819, Lydia Howe. 

Mel, b. Feb. 13, 1797 ; m. 1st, Mary Bigelow, 2d, Sally H. Felton. 
Judith, b. Oct. 5, 1799; m. Joel Bullard, r. Berlin. 



Abner Brigham m. Dorothy Wood, daughter of Peter Wood, Ksq., 
of Marl. He d. Nov. 4, 1828. She d. July 6, J854, aged 87. 

Lorijig, b. March 19, 1795. 

Mien, b. May 4, 17!>7 ; d. Sept. 7, 1797. 

Mmer, b. June 21, 1798; m. Lucinda Maybee, r. Yarmonth. C. W. 

JVancij, b. July 15, 1800; m. 1st, O'Sullivan, 2d, Walter Felch. 

Jldolphus, b. Dec. 4, 1802; m. 1st, Eliza Ann Parker, 2d, Rebecca 

Knowlton. He practiced medicine at Shrewsbury, and d. April 3, 

1858. 
Louisa, b. March 31, 1805; m. Elijah B. Witherbcc, r. Flint, Mich. 
Mdcn, ?. jur , ,o ,007. Sm. Laura Brigham. 
Austin,\^- *^^''^*' ^^' '*'"''H-unm- aged 22 years. 



WiLLARD Brigham m. Betsey Russell, dau. of Oliver Russell. He 
d. Aug. 28, 1835. 

Harriet, b. Oct. 3, 1802. 311 Man/, b. Oct. 1, 1804. 

Levi, b. Oct. 14, 1806; grad. Williams Coll. Studied theology at 
Andover, is settled as a clergyman at Saugus. He m. Mary Fay. 

George, b. Oct. 12, 1808 ; m. Mary Ann Hapgood, r. in N. H. 

Hannah, b. Jan. 18, 181! ; m. Otis Brown. 

Willard, b. May 4, 1813; grad. Wms. Coll. Studied divinity at An- 
dover, r. at Ashfield. Pastor of the church there. 

Aaron, b. April 7, 1817; m. Salinda Stratton. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 1, 1820: m. Jonathan Randall. 



Caleb Brigham m. Martha Brigham, dau. of William. He d. Aug. 
17, 1842. She d. April 20, 1860, aged 78. 

Martlui C, b. Oct. 31, 1803 ; m. Matthias Rico, r. Fitchburg. 
Laura, b. July 1, 1605 ; d. young. 



321 



344 



Francis Dana, b. April 19, 1808 ; m. 1831, Sarah Pope, dau, of Hon. 
Stephen Pope. He is a trader at Feltonville. By patient industry 
and careful attention to his business, he has accumulated a hand- 
some property, and has recently erected one of the most desirable 
dwelling-houses in the villagre. It is constructed and finished in the 
best style, and contains all the modern improvements. Hard and 
soft water of any temperature, can be conveyed to any apartment, 
thereby furnishing convenience for washing and bathing. The 
house is pleasantly situated, and is an ornament to the place. The 
following is a view of the mansion. 



M 



322 
323 
324 
325 



1- 2 

3 
4 





y?Sg;-=^C5^f°^^''§*^*'*^^ '^-^^*-^^^ 



C/iar/es, b. May 3, 1811. 

Laura Jinn, b. April 20, 1813; m, Alden Brigham. 
Austin P., b. April 4, 1815; d. Sept. 4, 1818. 
Sophia, b. July 1, 1817; d. Sept. 5, 1818. 



There is another branch of the Brigham family, which, though it 
has not always remained in Marl., may with propriety be mentioned, 
as several members returned to the town. 

Nathan Brigham, (No. 32 in this series,) son of Nathan and 
Elizabeth (Howe) Brigham, had in Southborough by his second wife, 
Elizabeth Snow, a son IVilliam, b. April 8, 1735. This 

William Brigham m. Sept. 4, 1759, Rebecca Ball. She d. Dec. 
14, 1768, and he m. 2d, Lydia Chamberlain. He and his second wife 
both d. of the small pox in 1793. There is some uncertainty in this 
family, as only a portion of his children, or supposed children, are 
recorded upon the Marl, records. He is supposed to have come into 
Marl, soon after his second marriage. He resided a little south of the 
Pond, where Joel Gleason now resides. 

William, b. Feb. 27, 1761 ; m. Sarah Baker, r. Southboro'. 

Rebecca, b. Feb. 1, 1763; m Jewell, r. St. Albans, Vt. 

Peter, b. Dec. 27, 1764 ; m. Bent, r. Westboro'. 

Migail, b. March 4, 1766. 6 Holli3, b. Dec. 4, 1768, d. same day. 
\Ephraim, b. Oct. 9, 1771, (by second wife.) 



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HoUis, b. March 14, 1773; d. June 8, 1837, unm. 

Ifillard, b. June J 8, 1775; in. Abi(,rail Munroe, r. at Rindge, N. II. 

Lyjdia, b. Dec. 29, 177(1; ni. Arteinas Erigliam. 

Pollij, b. Jan. 30, 1779 ; m. Willard Howe. 

PntUi, b. March 22, 1782 ; m. Caleb Brigham. 

Sopfda, b. June 12, 1784 ; m. Hon. Jed. Looinis, r. Montpelier, Vt. 

Dana, b. June 8, 1787 ; d. of lockjaw, unm. 



Ephraim Brigham m. Nov. 4, 1795, Lucy Rice, dan. of Peter and 
Levina Rice, b. Dec. 21, 1774. She d. Feb. 20, 18J4, and he m. 
March 15, 1815, Mary Hubbard, of Leicester. He resided in Marl., 
on the place now occupied by Mr. Joel Gleason. He afterwards 

moved to Wayland, where ho d. . His widow is now residing in 

Saxonville. He was a military man, and rose to the rank of Colonel. 



jrUiiam C, b. Aug. 7, 1795; m. 1817, Lydia Rico, r. Wardsboro', Vt. 

Matthias, b. Nov. 29, 179(); ni. Caroline Grossman; d. 1854, in Ohio. 

Luaj, b. March 11, 1798 ; m. 1st. Luther Howe, 2d, James Howe. 

Ephraim, b. Oct. 21, 1799 : m. Dec. (J, 1821, Sophia Howe, r. Modway. 

Harriet, b. March 14, 1801 ; m. Merrick Phelps. 

Sidne;/, b. Dec. 28, 1802; m. Eliza B. Stevens ; d. 1840, in Ga. 

FJijuh. b. Nov. 17, 1804 ; m. Mary Locker, r. Boston. 

Peter, b. Sept. 18, 1800; ni. Lydia Maynard, r. Cambridge. 

Lifdia, b. June 2, 1809 ; m. Matthias Walker, r. North. 

Sophia, b. Dec. 5, 1811 ; m. Josiah Stone, r. Saxonville. 

Mary H., b. April 27, 18IG (by 2d wife) ; d. unm. 

Jane E., b. Dec. 20, 1818 ; m. Samuel Kendnll, r. Natick. 

Caroline C, b. Dec. 22, 1821 ; m. William Ingrahain, r. Watcrtown. 

Charles C, b. April 9, 1824 ; d. Oct. 3, 1826. 



In this account of the Brighams I have been greatly aided by a 
published Genealogy of the Brigham Family, by Rev. Ahncr Morse, 
whose labors in the Genealogical Department arc untiring. The 
Brighams as a whole have been highly respectable, and some branches 
of the family have produced distinguished men. 

Ebenezer Brigham, Esq., of Blue Mounds, Dane County, Wis., 
son of David Brigham, of Shrewsbury, b. 1789, is a descendant of 
the Marl. Brighams. He went West in 1812, has seen much of 
Western frontier life, was one of the first white inhabitants of Wis- 
consin, and is known as the " father of the State." He is a man of 
very general intelligence, was many years a member of the Territorial 
Legislature, and was the one who selected Madison as the Capital 
of the State. He has been extensively engaged in Lead Mining, and 
was the first to introduce that species of industry into the Northwest. 
He resided at Blue Mounds, in a house of original simplicity, which 
he has kept as a public house. He was never married. He was exten- 
sively known throughout the Northwest, and was highly respected as a 
gentleman of intelligence, public spirit and unbending integrity. He 
died Sept. 14, 18(J1. The Dane County bar, to express their venera- 
tion for his character, adopted the following Resolution : " That we 
regard it as a privilege to bear our testimony, in this public manner, 
to the unblemished morals, the nrdent patriotism, the benevolent 
character, and generous heart of our esteemed and lamented friend." 

Hon. Elijah Brigham, of Westborough, a man of distinguished 
worth, was from the same stock. He was sixteen years Jud'jfe of the 
Court of Common Pleas, and eight years a member of Congress, and 
d. highly honored and greatly lamented in 1818. 



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346 

Hon. Paul Brigham, of Norwich, Vt., dates back to Marl. lie 
was in service through the greater part of the Revolution, was five 
years High Sheriff of the County of Windsor, and five years Chief 
Justice of the County Court, a Maj. Gen. in the Militia, several years 
a member of the Legislature, and twenty years Lieut. Gov. of Vt. 

Hon. Lincoln F. Brigham, one of the Associate Justices of the 
Superior Court of the Commonwealth ; Rev. Daniel Brigham, now 
a clergyman at Bridgewater; Rev. Charlf.s H. Brigham, a distin- 
guished clergyman in Taunton; William Brigham, Esq., of Boston ; 
Ripley Brigham, Esq., of Milwaukie, Wis., and several other gen- 
tlemen, more or less known to fame, have descended from the old 
Marl, stock, and reflect honor upon their early ancestors and the 
name of Brigham. 

BRITAIN.— John Britain had in Marl. Jane, b. Sept. 16, 1724 ; 
and William, b. Sept. 16, 1726. 



BROOKS.— Charles Brooks m. Nov. 24, 1757, Mary Hapgood, 
and had Lydia, h. Sept. 11, 1759; Pcrsis, h. Jan. 4, 1762; Mary, b. 
Nov. 13, 1764. 



Jacob Brooks m. Nov. 17, 1774, Martha Rice, and had Jacob, b. 
June 28, 1775. 



THE BROWN FAMILY! 

The Browns of Marl, were probably descendants of diflferent emi- 
grants. The Browns in N. E. were so numerous, and the Marl, 
records are so meagre, that I find it impossible to classify them. 
John Brown, baptized in England, Oct. 11, 1601, came over in the 
ship Lion, 1632,ssettled in Watertown, «t. Dorothy, and had John and 
two daughters. John, the son, m. Esther Makepeace, of Boston. He 
settled first in Cambridge, where he had four children ; then he moved 
to Marl, soon after the incorporation of the town. He sold his place 
in Marl, to Thomas Rice, moved to Falmouth, then back to Water- 
town, where he d. 1697. He had in Marl. John, b. Nov. 27, 1664 ; 
Hester, b. Dec. 11, 1667; Ruth, b, Dec. 8, 1668 ; Migail, b. March 9, 
1674. Probably no one of the family remained in the place. 



James Brown m. May 5, 1719, Sarah Howe. She d. and he m. 
Jan. 26, 1725, Deborah Rice, who d. Dec. 1, 1725, and he m. Dec. 7, 
1727, Mary Claice, who d. Dec. 31, 1734, and he m. as his 4th wife, 
Thankful. By his different wives he had Elizabeth, b. July 6, 1720; 
Susanna, d. young; Mary, b. April 28, 1733; Robert, h. April 4, 1739 ; 
James, b. Jan. 12, 1741. 



John Brown, probably from Stow, m. Feb. 10, 1763, Mary Bruce, 
and had Thomas, b. Sept. 1, 1763 ; William, b. April 22, 1765 ; and 
Sarah, b. May 17, 1768. 



Samuel Brown m. Elizabeth . He was a mason, and was 

killed by falling from the roof of a house, Sept. 27, 1817, aged 54. 
She d. 1841, aged 74. 

Ann, b. Nov. 5, 1786. 3 Mary, b. Feb. 3, 1789. 

Sarah, b. March I, 1791. 



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FAhnheth A., b. Sept. 19, 1792 ; m. April 3, 1814, Richard P. Noyes. 
Samuel, b. Aujj. ], 1795; ni. May 5, 1822, Aretliusa Lee, r. at Lowell. 
Jf'illmin, b. Nov. 19, 1799; m. ]820, Laura Ann Howe, r. at Lowell. 
Ebenezer, b. Feb. 1800; m. June 16, 1823, Mary Brigham. 
Hannah B., b. June 11, 1803; m. July 22, 1825, Francis Weeks. 
David, b. May 25, 1805. 



Isaac Brown m. Dec. 24, 1780, Deborah Gould. 



Betsey, b. April 6, 1783 ; di young. 
Isaac, b. March 19, 1787; d. 1793. 
Mijah, b. Feb. 24, 1794. 
Zii/cy, b. Aug. 28, 1796. 
miiiam H., b. March 10, 1804. 



3 Betsey, b. 1784. 
5 James IK, b. April 19, 1789. 
7 nillard, b. July 13, 1790. 
9 Marif W., b. Nov. 18, 180L 
11 Sophia J., b. March 14, 1808. 



THE BRUCE FAMILY. 

The Bruccs of Marl, probably had different ancestors. Some of the 
families of that name appear to have been rather migratory, being at 
one time in, and at another time out of the town ; so as to perplex and 
confuse the record. 

Roger Brcce was in Marl, early, and had a wife and family. He 
was probably a son of John Bruce, who was in Sudbury in 1G72, and 
who had a grant of land in Marl, bounded upon Peter Bent's mill pond. 

He was a miller, and attended Bent's mill. He m. Elizabeth . 

He d. in Southboro', Sept. 1(1, 1733. He resided near Stony Brook, 
and consequently was included in South, when it was set off from 
Marl. 



\Samuel, b. March 24, 1691 ; m. Elizabeth . 

Mijah, b. Nov, 27, 1693; m. 1719, Mary Woods. 
\Elisha, b. Sept. 14, 1695 ; m. Silence, and went to Worcester. 
Rebecca, b. Feb. 22, 1698. 6 Sarah, b. May 2, 1700. 

\Daniel, b. Feb. 22, 1701 ; m. Dec. 1, 1732, Bathsheba Bowker. 

Thomas, b. Jan. 5, 1704 ; m. Sarah . 

Hannah, b. Feb. 18, 1706. 10 Deliverance, b. Sept. 9, 1709. 

David, b. June 9, 1711 ; had two wives and children in South, m. 1st 
Feb. 20, 1727, Mary Brigham, and had David, b. in Marl. 



Samuel BrOce m. Elizabeth 



Jerusha, born Oct. 20, 1721 ; m. Sept. 25, 1744, Gerehom Newton. 
Sarah, b. Aug. 13, 1723. 14 Joseph, b. Dec. 4, 1726. 

Samuel, b. 1729, in South. 16 Roger, b. 1734, in South. 



Elisha Bruce m. Silence, and had Hepzihah, b. Dec. 30, 1725, and 
lived in South. 



Daniel Bruce m. Dec. 1, 1732, Bathsheba Bowker. 



7-17 Ruth, h. May 22, 17;53. 

19 Liinj, b. Nov. 6, 1737. 

21 John, b. May 29, 1744. 

23 " 
24 



Mary, b. Aug. 9, 1748 ; m. 1764, John Brown. 
Daniel, b. Sept. 21, 1752. 



18 Mralunn, b. Dec. 2;J, 1735. 
20 Bmjamin, b. Dec. 24, 1739. 
22 BcUy, b. Jan. 22, 1746. 



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There was another family of Brucea which came to Marl, from 
VVoburn, whore there were many of that name, several of whom 
intermarried with the Marl, families. 

John Bruce came from Woburn to Marl, about 1740, and settled 
on a part of the Indian Plantation near where the late Dea. Ezekiel 
Bruce resided. He probably was accompanied by his son William, 
then a young man. 

William Bruce m. March 10, 1747, Abigail Kendall, of Woburn. 
She d. April 22, 17G3, aged 41, and he m. Sarah Kendall, of Woburn, 
Oct. 25, 1764. He was probably the William Bruce who d. 1803. 

Migail, b. Oct. 22, 1747 ; m. July 3, 17fi4, Elijah Flagg. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 20, 1749; m. April 4, 17G9, John Wilkins. 
\J\''ath(mid, b. Oct. 26, 1753 ; m. Oct. 13, 1774, Mary Clisbee. 
Zeruiah, b. Feb. 27, 1755. 
John, b. Aug. 31, 1757 ; grad. at Dart. 1781 ; d. 1809. He was a 

clergyman. 
Martha, b. Dec. 10, 1761 ; m. Abel . 



Nathaniel Bruce m. Mary Clisbee, Oct. 13, 1774. She d. Oct. 
8, 1829, aged 82. He d. July 6, 1834, aged 82. 

William, b. Aug. 2, 1775 ; m. Nov. 30, 1797, Molly Bruce. 
Migail, b. March 17, 1778; m. Sept. 18, 1797, David Smith. 
Moses, b. Aug. 10, 1780 ; m. Nov. 29, 1798, Susanna Bruce. 
\Ezekiel, h. May 1, 1784 ; m. March 18, 1804, Betsey Smith. 
Calvin, b. July 3, 1788. 



Ezekiel Bruce m. March 18, 1804, Betsey Smith. He d. Nov. 
7, 1860, aged 76. lie was a deacon of the East Church, and repre- 
sented the town in the General Court. 



Amory, b. June 18, 1804 ; m. Mary Nelson. 



Elizabeth, b. Feb. 27, 1808. 

f;^Jl^;^.Aug.l3,1814;: 

Mary .inn, b. June 11, 1818. 
Elmira, b. Jan. I, 1823. 
Elinor, b. — - 12, 1832. 



16 Abigail S., b. Oct. 1, 1811. 
young. 

20 miliam, h. Nov. 8, 1820. 

22 Sylvester B., b. Dec. 17, 1826. 



Several of the name of Bruce, connected with or descendants from 
some of the preceding families, have had children whose births are 
on Marl. Records. 



Thomas Bruce and wife Mary, had an adopted dau. Mary, b. April 
1, 1746. 



James Bruce, by wife Molly, had Jeduthan, b. Sept. 29, 1775, m. 
April 12, 1798, Susannah Smith; Susannah, b. June 24, 1776; Molly, 
b. Aug. 24, 1778. 



Joel Bruce, by wife Lydia Eager, had Henry, b. Jan. 3, 1796 ; 
Lydia, b. Feb. 28, 1798 ; Olis, b. July 15, 1800 ; Moses, b. Feb. 24, 
1802 ; Charles, b. Dec. 9, 1805. 



Susanna (Joslin) Bruce, wid. of Timothy Bruce, d. in Marl. 
1832, at the advanced age of 99. 



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THE BUSH FAMILY,. 

Abiel Bush was in Marl, as early as 1690. He. m. Grace Barrett, 
1G88, who d. June 1, 1739, " aged almost 70." He resided in the north 
part of the town, on the line of Bolton, north of Feltonville. 



jJonathan, b. Jan. 19, 1()90 ; m. Sarah Randall. 
Miel, b. March ^8, 1(»1 ; d. Dec. 15, 1715. 
^jHezekiah, b. Feb. KJ, 1G93 ; m. Oct. 31, 1721, Abigail Joslin. 
Grace, b. May 3, 1G9G; m. Dec. 4, 1718, Peter Howe. 
John, b. July 18, 1699; m. April 24, 1723, Martha Temple, and moved 
to Shrewsbury. 

'; Joseph, b. April 1, 1705; m. Mary . 

Sarah, b. Oct. 27, 1709 ; m. March 15, 1727, Moses Johnson. 



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Jonathan Bush m. Sarah Randall, July 24, 1715. He d. March 
26, 1732. 

Lucy, b. March 9, 1716. 10 Lijdia, b. May 23, 1717. 

Jonathan, b. Jan. KJ, 1719; d. March 3, 1745. 

Lois, b. March 8, 1721. 

Rachel, b. Jan. 13, 1724; m. 174!), Aaron Kidder. 

\ Jesse, b. Jan 31, 1727. He was in the French war. 

Phebe,h. March 3, 1729. 

\jyiicah, b. Jan. 29, 1731 ; m. April 19, 1759, Hannah Wilder, of Bolton. 



Hezekiah Bush m. Abigail Joslin. He d. March 5, 1750. 

Dinah, b. Sept. 30, 1722; m. Feb. 22, 1743, Thomas Baker. 
Dorolhij, b. Jan. 29, 1725 ; d. June 26, 1739. 
Damaris, b. Aug. 22, 1727. 

Solomon, b. April 1, 1731 ; m. Jan. 1, 1751, Submit Morse, who d. 
Dec. 19, 1765. 



Joseph Bush m. Mary . - . -o . ./ . . 

Zebediali, b. Dec. 17, 1729; he was in the French war. 

Jibicl, b. Jan. 1, 1731 ; he was in the Indian war. 

.Man/, b. June 4, 1733 ; m. 1761, John Johnson. 

Tn/phosa, b. July 13, 1736 ; m. March 29, 1764, Uriah Eager, Jr. 

Parlhius, b. Aug. 2, 1738. 

Joseph, b. Sept. 11, 1741 ; m. Feb. 6, 1766, Dorothy Howe. 

Dority, b. Sept. 29, 1744. 



.. r 



Jesse Bush m. Dinah . 

Jabez, b. March 7, 1752; m. April 147S J , Susanna Brown. 
Jlepzibah, b. Feb. 20, 1754 ; m. July 11, 1776, Robert Fife. 
Lncy, b. July 20, 1756. 

Betfy, b. Feb. 18, 1761 ; ni. Dec. 15, 1785, Aaron Jones. 
Stephen, h. Aug. Ki, 1765; m. Nov. 26, 1788, Lucy Tainter. 
Dinah, b. June 26, 1767. 34 Ephruim, b. Dec. 8, 1769. 

Molly, b. June 18, 1772. 



Micah Bush ni. Dorothy. She d. 1757, and he m. April 19, 1759, 
Hannah Wilder. After the birth of his children, he removed to 
Bolton, where he d. and where his cbildren mostly settled. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 5, 1755; m. Zebediali Simonds, 1786. 
Beoka, b.Oct. 3, 1756. 38 Jonathan, b. Nov. 29, 1757. 

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Hannah, b. Jan. 14, 1760. 

Dalla, b. Sept. 22, 1762 ; d. in Bolton, unm. 

Calvin, b. Dec. 23, 1763 ; m. Elizabeth Temple, of Princeton. 

Levi, b. Nov. 25, 1765. - 43 Eunice, b. Dec. 17, 1766. 

Micah, b. Dec. 4, 1768 ; went south. 



Samuel Bush, perhaps brother of Abiel, m. July 15, 1708, Eliza- 
beth Wheeler, and had Jotham, b. Jan. 21, 1709 ; Zeruiah, b. Aug. 28, 
1710, d. Dec. 18, 1710; Jlmaziah, b. March 15, 1712; MiUicent,h. 
Oct. 16, 1713, d. Feb. 28, 1715. 



BUTLER. — Peter Butler, by wife Sarah, had John, b. March 4, 
1732 ; Phcbe, b. Nov. 1733 ; Peter, b. March 26, 1735; Mai-y, b. Oct. 
1736; Sarah, h. Aug. 1738. 



CADY. — James Cadt, by wife Thankful, had Hannah, b. 1711 ; 
Elias, b. Sept. 6, 1712 ; Joseph, b. March 5, 1714. 



CALDWELL. — John Caldwell, by wife Susanna, had John, b. 
Oct. 1, 1788; James, b. May 3, 1791; Mary, b. 1792; Eunice, b. 
1794 ; Daniel, b. 1796 ; Susanna, b. 1799 ; Sally, b. 1801 ; miliam, b. 
1803 ; Lydia, b. 1805. 



THE CHURCH FAMH^Y. 

Garrett Church, of Watertown, was b. in England, 1611 ; m. 
Sarah, and had six children, among whom was 

David, b. Sept. 1, 1657, He m. Mary, by whom he had two chil- 
dren, b. in Wat., where he kept a public house. About 1700 he came 
to Marl., where the rest of his children were born. He probably lost 
his first wife, and m. in 1710, Mary Wilder, as his second wife. 

John, bap. in Wat. Nov. 6, 1689. 

Sarah, bap. in Wat. Nov. 6, 1689 ; m. 1718, Simon Maynard. 
\Adonijah, b. Oct. 17, 1710; m. April 10, 1747, Sarah Howe. 
fAboZt, b. Sept. 18, 1712; m. Feb. 18, 1742, Lydia Barnard. 
Ephraim, b. Dec. 18, 1714; m. Feb. 3, 1736, Sarah Gates. 
Ma^-y, b. June 22, 1717.; m. March 17, 1741, Joel Brigham. 



Adonijah Church m. April 10, 1747, Sarah Howe, dau. of J 
than and Sarah. She d. Sept. 8. 1758, aged 36 years, 10 months 
3 days. He d. at Holden, March 24, 1787. 

\Mfxander, b. July 27, 1748 ; m. May 2, 1771, Rebecca Tucker. 
Zadock, b. Feb. 8, 1751 ; d. Aug. 14, 1757. 
Sarah, b. Aug. 5, 1755 ; d. Sept. 25, 1755. 



ona- 
and 



Noah Church m. Lydia Barnard. He moved to New Marlborough 
with his family. 

Lydia, b. June 20, 1743 ; m. May 31, 1764, Adonijah Howe.-w 

David, b. June 17, 1745. 

Lucy, b. Feb. 4, 1747 ; m. Wm. Ward, r. New Marl. 

Molly, b. Oct. 26, 1749 ; m. Obadiah Ward, r. New Marl. 

Lovisa, b. March 4, 1751. 17 Oliver, b. March 26, 1754. 

Betty, b. May 1, 1756. 19 Phebe, b. May 25, 1758. 

JVodh, b. Oct. 19, 1760. 



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Alf.xandkr Church ni. May 2, 1771, Rebecca Tucker, 
a soldier in the Army of tlie Revolution. 



lie was 



9-21 Sarah, b. Dec. 12, 1771. 
23 Zadock, b. July 23, 177G. 



22 Sophia, b. April 19, 1774. 
24 Lucy, b. March 18, 1779. 



CLARK. — Benjamin Clark, (lineage not ascertained,) m. Abigail 

, and had .Mary, b. Dec. 18, 17()9 ; in. Aug. 29, 1787, Simeon 

Eames ; Jlbitrail, b. March 22, 1772; m. Dec. 31, 1792, Benjamin 
Gould; Benjamin, b. April 2, 1778; m. 1800, Catharine Eustis, and 
had 1(5 children; SalUj, b. May 4, 1780; m. Sept. 11, 1798, Jonathan 
Weeks; jXancy, b. March 5, 1782; Bdsey, b. Oct. 10, 1784; m. Feb. 
20, 1805, Levi Colby. 



Benjamin Clark, the father, d. April 15, 1829, aged 86. 
d. Feb. 11, 1830, aged 79. 



His widow 



CLEASBY. — JosKPH Cleasby, by wife Sarah, had Joseph, h. Sept. 
9, 17G5; m. Jan. 11, 1787, Miriam llowe. Josepli Cleasby came to 
Marl, from Lynn. 



CLEMENS.— Jonathan Clemens, by wife Hannah, had Samuel, 
b. April 20, 1703 ; Jabez, b. Aug. 29, 17ti.5. 



THE COGSWELL FAMILY. 

William Cogswell came to Marl, from Boston about 1775, as a 
trader, and located himself near Spring Hill. His wife's name was 
Abigail. She d. Nov. 20, 1833, aged 81. 

Migail, b. Dec. 7, 1775 ; m. Feb. 22, 1801, Samuel Gibbon. 

Francis, b. Aug. 13, 1777; d. Dec. 13, 1777. 

Etizabelh, b. Nov. 15, 1778; m. Aug. 16, 1797, David Munroe. 

Mekitubel, b. Oct. 15, 1780; m. 1802, Rev. James Converse. 

Hannah L., b. April 29, 1782; m. June 25, 1801, Thomas Cole. 

Lydia, b. Jan. 28, 1784 ; m. June 23, 1813, Micah Slierman. 

h'illiam, b. March 25, 1786 ; d. Jan. 31, 1788. 

Ruihy, b. Nov. 23, 1787. 

Charles, b. April 12, 1789; m. 1814, Lucy Wilder, and d. June 11, 

1838. 
Sally, b. Oct. 2, 1790; m. Oct. 21, 1812, John Brown. 
Rebecca, b. March 31, 1792; m. Nov. 2(i. 1829, Samuel Weld. 
Lucrelia, b. April 24, 1794; d. Nov. 25, 1803. 
Henry F., b. May 8, 179(5. 15 William D., b. July 6, 1798. 



THE COTTING FAMILY. 

On the death of Dr. Ebcnezer Dexter, 1769, Dr. Amos Cotting, from 
Waltham, came to Marl, and established hhnself as a physician. I 
have not been able to trace his lineage. 

Amos Cotting m. Dinah Newton, 
record of the family is very imperfect. 

Sukey P., b. March 18, 1783; m. Jan. 27, 1801, Walter Morse. 
miliam L. P., b. June 27, 1785 ; d. Feb. 13, 1790. 



He d. June 17, 1807. The 



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7 



1-5- 



9 
10 
11 
13 



1-6- 



G-14 
15 



Roland C, b. April 17, 1787 ; d. unm. 

Charles C, b. Feb. IG, 1789; m. Nancy Bradley, d. in Boston. 

ff'tUiam, b. Jan. 4, 1791 ; lost at sea. 

Jlntory, b. Feb. 26, 1793 ; m. June 7, 1821, Dolly B. Bruce. 

Samuel, b. May 29, 1795 ; m. Ann Hammet, resided in Boston. 

Amos, b. May 27, 1797 ; m. in Boston, Harriet Tuttle. 

John, b. May 1, 1799: m. Oct. 17, 1820, Sally C. Brigham. 

Uriah, b. Nov. 23, 1802 ; moved to Boston, d. at New Orleans. 



COX.— Emsha Cox m. June 28, 179J, Molly Bruce, and had 
Elisha, b. Oct. 23, 1791, m. May 13, 1824, Eliza Wilkins ; Riifiis, 
b. Nov. 3, 1793; JVillnrd, b. May 9, 179(i; Loring, b. June 2G, 1799, 
ni. April 17, 1823, Alma Wood, dau. of Moses VVood. 



THE CRANSTON FAMILY. 

The records of this family are very defective. What we give is 
gleaned from scattered items, and from a friend of the family. 

Samuel Cranston emigrated from England a young man, and 
settled probably in the western part of the Colony, where he m. Eliz- 
abeth Brown. It is probable that he and his wife, and at least three 
children, came to Marl, about 1728. lie d. in Marl. 

Elishn, moved to Ashfield, where he m. and had issue. 
Elizabeth, m. in 1738, John Barnes, of Marl. 

Hannah, m. 1st, Dunton, and 2d, Lucas Dunn. 

\Jlmasa, b. in Marl. April 3, 1730; m. Mary Harthron. 
\Ahner, b. Oct. 21, 1732; m. 17G5, Mrs. Lydia Wilkins. 
Patience, b. Nov. 11, 1742 ; m. Solomon Banister, of Brookfield. 



Amasa Cranston m. Nov. 5, 1754, Mary Harthron. He d. April 
26, 1808, aged 78; and she d. Oct. 26, 1821, aged 85. He was a sol- 
dier in the French and Indian wars, entering the service at the tender 
age of 16. The Revolutionary struggle found him ready for the field. 
On the " Lexington alarm," he repaired at once to the scene of action. 
He was at that time Lieut, in Capt. Cyprian Howe's Company. He 
entered the regular service with the rank of Capt. and was promoted 
to a Major. He served through the greater part of the war, and was 
in several battles, as that of Bennington, White Plains, &c. After 
leaving the army, he filled several civil offices, as that of constable, 
selectman, &c. 

Lydia, b. 1760 ; d. in infancy. 

t Joe/, b. Sept. 17, 1763 ; m. Sept. 27, 1784, Lucretia Eager. 

Marxj, b. March 22, 17GG; m. Abner Phillips, of Ashfield, and d. 1846. 

Moses, d. in childhood. 12 Lois, b. Dec. 19, 1771 ; m. John Ward. 

Cathaiine, b. Feb. 20, 1775; m. Stephen Nash. 



Abner Cranston m. Feb. 6. 1765, Mrs. Lydia (Smith) Wilkins, 
wid. of Edward Wilkins. He served in several campaigns in the 
French war ; he was also in the army of the Revolution, and d. in 
service in 1777. She d. in 1801 ; and in her will mentions Eliza- 
beth Randall, Jonas, Edward, and Solomon Wilkins, children by her 
first husband. 



Lydia, b. ; m. Sept. 30, 1784, Lovewell Dunn, 

Betsey, b. ; m. May 8, 1792, Jonah Howe. 



353 



1- 



JoEL Cranston m. Sept. 27, 1784, Lucretia Eager, dau. of Bayley 
and Catharine (Warren) Eager. They liad no children. He d. at 
Rock Bottom, Stow, Oct. '-i'i, 18.'?.5, aged 72 years. She d. July 20, 
I84(), aged 80 years and !* months. Joel Cranston was well known 
to the public. He filled various offices, represented the town in 
the General Court, and the County in the Senate of Mass., and was 
many years a Justice of the Peace. He was a man of sagacity and 
enterprise. One who knew him well, says of him : " He may truly 
be said to be the founder of Feltonville. Before the connnencement 
of the present century, lie opened a store there, kept a public house, 
and a few years later started quite a number of mechanical branches 
of industry, viz. : cloth dressing, blacksmithing, tanning, carding of 
wool, &c. He also erected a number of buildings. Afterwards he 
became a farmer and manufacturer, and was the principal agent in 
building up Rock Bottom." 



CROSBY.— Jonathan Crosby m. Sept. 22, 178;"), Anna Morse, 
and had Eliznhetli, b. 1787; Jl'illiam, h. April 2(5, 178!l; Jonathan, b. 
Aug. 11, 17!)1 ; jVancy, b. ]7!>:{; ('harks, b. 171>.'), d. young; Charles, 
b. Dec. 1!>, 171H; ; Phebe S., b. 17!)i». 



THE CURTIS FAMILY. 

After the death of Dr. Dexter in 17(59, widow Dexter took Samuel 
Curtis, of Roxbury, into her family, as a physician. He m. JunelJO, 
1771, Lydia Dexter, wid. of Dr. Dexter. Slie d. Dec. 21, 1774, and 
he m. Mrs. Abigail Whitney, of Weston, 1778. He was a man 
of influence in the town, was clerk, selectman, &.c., and a justice of 
the peace. He was a member of the Committee of Correspondence 
in 1778. 

Anna, b. Oct. .5, 1771 ; d. young. 

Christian, b. March 'M, 1774. 4 Samuel, b. Feb. 14, 177!). 

Jlnna, b. May 2(i, 1780. G Fanny, b. March 19, 1781. 



CUNNINGHAM.— Simeon Cunningham was in Marl., and m. 
April 17, 17!»2, Miriam Brigham, dau. of Noah and Miriam. He had 
several children, but their births are not recorded. The same is true 
of his death. She d. Feb. 29, 18.50, aged 87. 



THE DARLING FAMILY. 

Amos Darling, of Framinghani, (said to have come from Danvcrs, 
m. Hepzibah Bruce, of Southboro'. He d. 1837, acred 80. 



Joseph, b. Oct. 1746; m. 1773, Eunice Flagg. She d. May 177.5. 
Elizabeth, b. 1748 ; m. 1772, Eleazer Rice, of Marl, 
f Jonas, b. June 4, 1753; m. 1778, Mary Knights. 
Lucij, b. 1755 ; m. Daniel Rice, J 778. 



Amos, born 1757 ; m. Lovisie Hager. 
Hepzibah, b. 1759; m. 1784, Levi Wilkins, of Marl. 
Lydia, b. 17(32 ; d. unm. 1789. 
9 I jj)aniel, b. July 24, 17()5 ; was twice married. 



854 



1-4- 



4-10 
11 
12 

13 
14 
15 
17 



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1- 2 
3 
4 
5 



1-2- 



2- G 

7 



1-4- 



4-10 
11 
12 
13 



1 



Jonas Darling m. 1778, Mary Knights. lie d. in Sterling. 

William, b. Sept. 24, 1778. 

Ethan, b. March 13, 1780; m. Oct. 19, 1803, Mary Hapgood. 

Darius, b. Sept. 21, 1782; m. 1806, Susanna Fairbanks, moved to 

Holdcn, and d. 18(J0. 
Justin, b. Oct. 31, 1784. 

Lydia, b. Dec. 9, 178(5; m. Feb. 11, 1810, Edward Severy. 
Amos. b. July 17, 1790. 16 Eber, b. July 11, 1792. 

Jonas, b. July 12, 1796. 



Daniel Darling m. Oct. 9, 1793, Rebecca Arnold; she d. 1838, 
and he m. Cliarlottc Hunting; she d. 1843. He had Betsey, b. 1794; 
m. 1818, David Howe. Trowbridge, b. 1798; m. 1828, Hannah Hay- 
C'/amsa, b. 1803; C'«ro/inft, b. 1808. 



den 



DAVIS. — ^^Eleazer Davis was in Marl, as early as 1745, and in. 
1749, Abigail Bowker. He was probably the father of Elcazer, Jr., 
who m. June 16, 1757, Abiali Ward, dau. of Daniel and Mary(Bige- 
low) Ward, and had Edward, h. May 19, 1758; Rebecca, b. 1762; 
Rosanna, b. 1765. 



DAWSON. — William Dawson, by wife Sophia, had Darius, b. 
March 8, 1780. 



THE DEXTER FAMILY. 

Ebenezer Dexter was a physician in Marl. He m. Lydia Woods, 
Feb. 7, 1754. He d. May 4, 1769, and she m. June 30, 1771, Dr. 
Samuel Curtis ; she d. Dec. 24, 1774. 

jJVilliam, b. April 17, 1755; m. Mrs. Betsey Bowker, 1775. 
Samuel, b. Nov. 14, 1756 ; he was a surgeon in the Revolutionary army. 
jJohn, b. Dec. 10, 1758 ; m. Mary Woods, May 3, 1783. 
./iaron H., b. June 25, 1762. 



William Dexter m. Mrs. Betsey Bowker. 
He was a physician. She m. Edward Lowe. 



He d. Dec. 4, 1785. 



Ebenezer, b. Oct. 30, 1775. 

Lydia, b. Feb. 28, 1777 ; she is now living in Leominster. 

Sally, b. Oct. 14, 1778. 9 William, b. Dec. 29, 1779. 



John Dexter m. May 3, 1783, Mary Woods, dau. of Moses and 
Lydia Woods. He d. 1816, in Boston. She d. 1823. ' 

Mary, b. Dec. 26, 1783 ; is living in Boston, unm. 
Samuel, b. Oct. 27, 1785 ; is living in Marl., unm. 
John H., b. Sept. 15, 1791 ; is living in Boston, unm. 
Lambert, h. May 7, 1794 ; resides in Boston. 



John Dexter m. Oct. 23, 1765, Mary Howe, dau. of Dea. Josiah 
Howe. 



1- 2 Catharine, b. Nov. 25, 1768 ; in. Silas Witt, March 12, 1801. 

3 Elizabeth, b. Jan. 5, 1771 ; m. 1798, Isaac Colburn. 

4 \ Charles, b. July 2, 1773 ; m. Dec. 26, 1796, Sarah Howe. 

5 \Mary Ward, b. Dec. 30, 1778; m. March 12, 1797, Moses Woodward. 



355 



Charles Dexter m. Dec. 20, 179(1, Sarah Howe. He moved from 
town. 



John B., b. June 24, 171)8. 
Manj, b. Nov. 4, 1802. 
Sally, b. Aug. 13, 1806. 



7 Richard M, h. Oct. 10, 1800. 
9 Elizabeth C, b. Jan. 19, 1804. 



THE EAGER FAMILY. 

William Eager m. Ruth Hill in Maiden, in 1059. He was one 
of the proprietors of the Ockoocan<ransett Plantation purchased of 
the Indians in 1084. We have no full record of his family. He had 
Ahraham, and probably Zachariah, John, Ruth, Zerubtuihel, Ijydia and 
William. He came to Marl, with his 2d wife Lydia, before 1082, and 
d. April 4, 1090. 

jJJbraJiam, b. ; m. Lydia Woods. 

^Zachariah, b. ; m. Elizabeth . 

John, b. June 0, 1089. 

Ruth, h. ; m. Nov. 11, 1095, John Banister. 

\Zerubbabcl, b. 1072 ; m. March 23, 1098, Hannah Kerley. 

Lydia, b. ; m. May 25, 1708, Johnson. 

Jaims, b. Sept. 21, 1()80 ; m. April 2, 1713, Tabitha Howe. 
William, b. Oct. 20, 1084. 



Abraham Eager m. Lydia Woods. He d. in Shrewsbury, Oct. 
25, 1734. She d. there Jan. 7, 1739. 

Martha, b. Augr. 15, 1093; m. Feb. 28, 1718, Asa Bowker. 

Lydia, b. July .3, 1090; m. June 19, 1721, William Thomas. 

Sarah, b. May 27, 1099. 

Hazadiah, b. July 1, 1701 ; d. Feb. 13, 1710. 

Phebc, b. Feb. 11, 1703 ; m. Jan. 6, 1730, Jabez Ward, moved to New 

Marlboro'. 
Zcruiah, b. Sept. 17, 1705; m. May 23, 1723, Daniel Barnes. 
Lucy, b. July 15, 1707 ; m. 173.'5, Jonas Morse. 
Abraham, b. Sept. 14, 1709 ; m. April 25, 1739, Dinah Rice, lived in 

Shrewsbury. 
Millictnt, h. Feb. 22, 1712 ; d. Dec. 24, 1712. 
Bezaleel, h. Dec. 22, 1713; m. 1735, P^i^is Ward ; settled in North., 

family distinguished. ' 

Benjamin, b. May 17, 1710; m. 1737, Abigj^il Johnson, of Worcester. 

lie resided in Shrewsbury. ( 



Zachariah Eager m. Elizabeth . He d. July 5, 1742. She 

d. Jan. 18, 1750. 



Ruth, b. Dec. 20, 1094 ; m. Howe. 

Elizabeth, b. May 27, 1090. 23 William, b. Feb. 14, 1697. 

Thankful, b. Dec. 29, 1099; m. ■ Brown. 

Mary, b 1702. 

Jonathan, b. March 21, 1705; d. 1772, umn. 

Phinehas, b. July 30, 1707; d. 1729. 

Margaret, b. Jan. 9, 1709. 

\./laron b. Feb. 1, 1713. 30 Zachtriah, b. Sept. 10, 1716. 



356 



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31 
33 
34 
35 
36 
37 
38 



1-8- 



-39 
41 



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29-42 
43 
45 
46 
47 
48 
49 

6-32- 



32-51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 

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38-57 

58 
59 
60 

29-46- 



46-61 



Zerubbabel Eager m. 1698, Hannah Kerley, dau. of Henry and 
Elizabeth Kerley. He d. Jan. 9, 1747. Hannah, Jacob, and Moses 
are not mentioned in his will, dated 1745 ; probably not living at that 
time. He was in the Revolutionary service. 



Hannah, b. March 14, 1699. 

\ Uriah, b. April 4, 1700; m. March 14, 1727, Sarah Brigham. 

Hepzibah, b. May 4, 1702; m. Jan. 20, 1736, James Woods. 

Jacob, b. Oct. 2, 1704 ; d. Dec. 18, 1723. 

Dumaris, b. Sept. 11, ; m. Johaniah Howe. 

Miriam, ^ ' &• ' ' ^ m. Feb. 26, 1730, Isaac Harrington. 
\John, b. March 28, 1718 ; m. Elizabeth . 



James Eager m. April 2, 1713, Tabitha Howe, dau. of Thomas 
and Sarah (Hosmer) Howe. 

Vashti, b. Jan. 14, 1713. 40 Hezediah, b. Dec. 1, 1715. 

James, b. March 6, 1720. He resided in North., and his property was 
confiscated in 1778, he being attached to the royal cause. 



Aaron Eager m. Mary . She d. Nov. 2, 1756. He d. Nov. 

11, 1756. 

Solomo7i, b. Jan. 29, 1735 ; m. Oct. 26, 1756, Dinah Goodnow. 
Man/, b. July 17, 1736. 44 Lucy, b. Feb. 7, 1738 ; d. 1756. 

ffiliiam, b. Sept. 23, 1739; m. Feb. 12, 1761, Sarah Stow. 
\Baileij, b. Feb. 7, 1741 ; m. Feb. 21, 1765, Catharine Warren. 
^'Jaron, b. March 28, 1743 ; he was in service at Cambridge, 1775. 
jJoseph, b. May 28, 1744 ; m. March 24, 1767, Hannah Woods. 
George, b. May 31, 1746. 50 Catharine, b. Nov. 1, 1748. 



Uriah Eager m. 1727, Sarah Brigham, dau. of Nathan and Eliza- 
beth. She d. Nov. 5, 1744 ; and he m. 1746, Rebecca Rice. He d. 
Dec. 30, 1780, and his widow d. Jan. 17, 1790. He marched as En- 
sign to Cambridge on the Lexington alarm, and was afterwards pro- 
moted to a Captaincy. 



JVathan, b. Feb. 9, 1731 ; m. 1755, Sarah Goodnow. 

Mai-i), b. May 27, 1733. 

Foiiunatus, b. July 6, 1735; m. June 13, 1758, Mehitabel Bigelow. 

Elizabeth, b. Jan. 21, 1737 ; d. July 24, 1740. 

j Uriah, b. Feb. 5, 1740 ; m. Triphosa Bush. 

Hannah, b. Dec. 29, 1741 ; m. Feb. 10, 1761, Uriah Newton. 



John. Eager m. Elizabeth — 
April 9, 1777. 

Joseph, b. June 8, 1746 ; m. Hannah . 

EHsha, ), T o/f 17/17 M- Oct. 9, 1747. 
VasMi, \ ^- J""^ 24' 1^4'- ) d. Oct. 1, 1747. 
]Lukc, b. Dec. 8, 1748 ; m. Vasiiti Walker. 



She d. May 25, 1750. He d. 



Bailey Eager, m. Feb. 21, 1765, Catharine Warren. He d. Feb. 
26, 1790. She d. Feb. 1, 1326, aged 80. 

JLacrefia, k. Oct. 1.5, 1765; m. Sept. 22, 1784, Joel Cranston. 



62 '[Abraham, b. June 25, 1768; m. Polly Clark. 

63 1 \Stephen, b. Nov. 7, 1772 ; m. Elizabeth Gates. 



357 



64 
05 

29-48- 

48-66 
32-55- 



55-68 
69 
70 
71 
72 
73 

38-60- 

60-74 
76 

78 

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62-79 
81 

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63-82 

83 

84 

55-71- 

71-85 

86 
88 
89 
90 



Levina, b. Oct. 23, 1773 ; d. Dec. 28, 1775. 
Jonathan, b. Dec. 2, 1779. 



Joseph Eager m. March 24, 1767, Hannah Woods. He was in tlie 
French war, 1760, under Capt. Williams, of Marl. 



JoAn, b. Nov. 20, 1768. 



67 Martin, b. Jan. 30, 1770. 



Uriah Eagkr rn. 1764, Triphosa Bush. He d. Sept. 30, 1813, 
aged 73. She d. Feb. 8, 1802. He was in service in Rhode Island, 
in the perilous days of the Revolution. 

Rebecca, b. Dec. 29, 1764 ; m. Oct. 17, 1786, Lovell Barnes. 

Mary, b. Oct. 26, 176<!; d. March 8, 1769. 

Triphena, b. Sept. 9, 1770; m. March 16, 1794, Alexander Hunting. 

jMoses, b. Oct. 30, 1772 ; m. Dec. 9, 1793, Sarah Stratton. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 29, 1774; m. Joel Bruce, 1796. 

Hepzibah, b. March 15, 1777; d. Sept. 15, 1778. 



Luke Eager m. 1770, Vashti Walker. He d. July 16, 1807. 

Am D., b. May 11, 1772. 
Christian, b. May 6, 177(5. 
Winthrop, b. Feb. 11, 1782. 



75 Lydia, b. June 11, 1774. 
77 Lois, b. Sept. 19, 1779. 



Abraham Eager m. 1785, Polly Clark, from Framingham. 



Elizabeth, b. Feb. 27, 1786. 
Luther, b. Feb. 10, 1789. 



80 Levinia, b. Nov. 29, 1787. 



Stephen Eager m. May 21, 1790, Elizabeth Gates. He was 
drowned in Boon's Pond, April 22, 1820, aged 49. 

Lucretia, b. Nov. 8, 1790 ; m. 1808, Otis Rice. 
Mollis, b. July 12, 1793 ; ni. Lucy Sawyer. 
Eliza, b. Aug. 6, 1804. 



Moses Eager m. Sarah Stratton, 1793. He moved to Weston. 

Marij, b. June 26, 1794; m. May 14, 1817, Willard Morse. 
Uriah, b. July 16, 1796. 87 Moses A., b. Nov. 16, 1797. 

n'insloiv, b. March 8, 1800. 

Triphosa B., b. Dec. 8, 1802 ; m. Russell. 

William, b. Dec. 4, 1804. 

They probably had another child unrecorded. 



There was another Eager family, the genealogy of which cannot 
be traced by the Marl. Records. 

William Eager m. Lydia, and had Mary, b. Oct. 20, 1682 ; ^ jydia, 
b. June 20, 1684; James, b. Sept. 21, 168(3; John, b. June 6, 1.689. 



THE EAMES FAMILY. 

Gershom Eames was in Marl, early, and probably^ left on the break- 
ing out of King Philip's war, and went to Wat., Avf^jerc he d. Nov. 25, 
1776. He m. Hannah Johnson, dau. of Solomon a nd Hannah, of Sud. 
46 



358 



She was b. April 27, 1050, and was not 21 years of age when her 
husband died. She had by him two children, Hannah, b. Feb. 3, 
- IG75, and Mart/, posthumous, b. 1G77. Mary m. John Keyes, whose 
houses, and his three sons, were burned in the night-time, Aug. 1723. 
Maj. Keyes d. at Shrewsbury, 1708, aged 93 years and 7 months, and 
his wid. Mary, d. 1772, aged 95 years and 1 mo. Gershom Eames's 
wid. m. Sept. 4, 1779, William Ward, of Marl., and d. Dec. 8, 1720, 
aged G4. 

The name in the early Records is spelt with an E, but most of the 
families have dropped the E and spell it Jlmes. 



1- 2 

4 

G 

7 
8 



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11 
12 
13 

14 
15 
IG 

18 



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23 
24 

1^ 25 



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27 

28 



Robert Eames, probably a relative of Gershom, ni. Anna, by whom 
he had several children. We learn from the Probate Records, that 
he d. March 3, 1780. His will, dated 1771,and proved 1780, mentions 
wife, Anna, sons, Samuel, Robert, James, John, and Ebenezer, and 
dau. Anna, Elizabeth, and Mary. He was the ancestor of the Marl. 
Eameses ; but his parents, I have not been able to ascertain. 

Sanmel, b. . 3 Anna, m. Abraham Skinner. 

James, b. . 5 Elizabeth, m. Josiah Witt, as his 2d wife. 

\Rohert, b. 1738 ; m. Jan. 30, 1759, Lydia Harrington. 

\Ebenezer, b. ; ni. Barsheba Fosket. 

John, b. . 9 Mary, b. Sept. 3, 1744. 



Robert Eames m. Jan. 30, 1759, Lydia Harrington. She d. 
March 4, 1805 ; and he d. Feb. 12, 1821, aged 83. He was a soldier 
of the Revolution. 

jlaron, b. March 11, 1759 ; m. Feb. 11, 1787, Elizabeth Boyd. 

Miriam, b. June 22, 1761. 

]Moses, b. June 4, 17G3; m. Nov. 8, 1785, Lydia Brigham. 

titephcn, b. April 25, 17G5; m. 1808, Sarah Bartlett ; d. March 7, 

1833, aged G7. 
John, b. May 9, 1767. 

Jesse, b. April 25, 1770 ; d. May 25, 1827, aged 57. 
Daniel, b. April 22, 1772. 17 Lydia, b. April 4, 1774. 

Reuben, b. Feb. 19, 1779. 19 Anna, b. Dec. 22, 1781. 



Ebenezer Eames m. Oct. 27, 1760, Barsheba Fosket, of Bolton. 
He d. May 14, 1820, aged 90. His will, dated 1796, and proved 
April 4, 1820, mentions wife Barsheba, son Simeon, and dau. Eliza- 
beth and Anna. Wid. Barsheba d. Feb. 7, 1836, aged 95. 

Reuben, b. Dec. 5, 1761 ; d. 1775. 

Eunice, h. Jan. 9, 1763 ; m. John Kinsman. ? 

^Simeon, b. Nov. 5, 1764; m. Lucy Weeks. 

Elizabclh, b. July 23, 1767; m. 1799, Samuel Brown. 

Anna, b. Oct. 8, 1769; m. Oct. 31, 1799, William Cooledge. 

Barsheba, b. May 25, 1771. 



Moses Eames m. Lydia Brigham. He d. June 24, 1825, aged G2. 
He was a deacon of the West Church. 

XcKMS, b. Aug. 31, 1786; m. May 24, 1812, Nancy Cliilds. She d. 
1819, and he m. 1821, Mehitabel Forbush. He d. June 11, 1856, 
aj^'cd 70. 
Lucinjia, b. Jan. 11, 1789; d. unm. June 20, 1833, aged 46. 
JVancy, h. March 1, 1792; m. July 23, 1809, Levi Bigelow. 



\ 



\ 



859 



7-22- 



22-29 

30 
31 



1- 2 
3 
4 
5 

C 

7 
8 
9 



1-2- 



SiMF.oN Eames m. 1787, Mnry Clark, dan. of Benjamin and Abigail 
Clark. He d. Sept. 3, 18:23, aged 58. She d. June 2, 1837, aged G7. 

Ebenezer, b. June 29, 1788 ; m. June 4, 1815, Lucy Weeks. 

Israel Loring, b. April 27, 1793; m. Dec. 5, 1820, Elizabeth Barnard. 

Benjamin, b. Sept. 13, 1797. 



EDWARDS. — David Edwards, by wife Hannah, had Jihigail, b. 
1720 ; Hannah, b. 1722. 



Jabez Edwards m. Susanna Goodnow, 1793, and had George, b. 
Sept. 9, 1793; William, b. June 15, 1795; Edward, b. Oct. 1(5, 1796; 
Elizabeth, b. June 2, 1798. 



THE FAY FAMILY. 

The Fays were not among the earliest settlers of New England. 
Though they have become somewhat numerous in the country, it is 
believed that they mostly sprang from one common ancestor. 

John Fay was b. in England about 1(148. He embarked May 30, 
lfi5(), at Gravescnd, on board the Speedwell, Robert Locke, Master, 
and arrived at Boston on the 27th of June. Among the passengers 
were Thomas Barnes, aged 20, Shadrach llapgood, aged 14, Tiiomas 
Goodnow, aged 20, Nathaniel Goodnow, aged Ki, John Fay, aged 8 
years. The emigrants here mentioned appear to have been bound to 
Sud., where some of them, at least, had parents or relatives ; and con- 
sidering the tender age of John Fay, we may naturally suppose that 
the same was true of him. He undoubtedly accompanied them to 
Sud., and as early as l(i(]9, wc find him in Mafl., where the births of 
his children are recorded. He m. Mary -t* — y^y wliom he had several 
children. On the breaking out of King Philip's war in 1775, he was 
in Marl, and was designated among others to defend the garrison 
house of William Kerley in case of attack. Like most of the settlers, 
he left the town soon after, and re])aired to a place of greater safety. 
While in Wat. to which he had retired, he buried his wife, and one of 
his sons; and on the 5th of July, l(i78, m. Mrs. Susanna Morse, wid. 
of Joseph Morse. Her maiden name was Shattuck, dan. of William 
Shattuck, of Wat., b. 1G43. After the returii of peace, he came back 
to Marl., where he d. Dec. .5, 1()90, aged SOT She m. July 30, 1(595, 
as her 3d husband, Thomas IBrigham, whose first wife was Mary Rice. 

\John, b. Nov. 30, 10(59; m. Elizabeth Wellington. 

David, b. ; d. Aug. 2, 107(5. 

\Samud, b. Oct. 11, 1(573 : m. May 16, 1699, Tabitha Ward. 
Mary, b. Feb. 10, 1675; m. March 26, 1(596, Jonathan Brigham. 
\David, b. April 23, 1(579 ; m. May 1, 1699, Sarah Larkin. 
\Gershom, b. Oct. 19, 1681 ; m. Mary Brigham. 
Ruth, b. July, 1(J84 ; m. June 28, 170(5, Increase Ward. 
Deliverance, b. Oct. 7, 1680 ; ni. Feb. 20, 1706, Benjamin Shattuck. 



John Fay m. Elizabeth Wellington. She d. and he m. 2d, Dec. 
16, 1729, Levinah Brigham, who survived him. He settled in that 
part of Marl, which is now Westborough. After the incorporation of 
that town, he became one of their most prominent citizens, and filled 
their principal town offices. He d. Jan. 5, 1747, and she d. March 
8, 1749. They had ten children, — the four eldest only arc recorded 
in Marl. 



360 



2-10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 
IG 
17 
18 
11) 



1-4- 



4-20 
21 
22 

23 
24 
25 
2G 



1-G- 



6-27 
28 
29 
30 
31 
32 
33 
34 

35 
30 

37 
38 



1-7- 



7-39 
40 
41 



42 
43 
44 
45 



Bathsheba, b. Jan. 1, 1693. 

Eunice, b. June 2, 1G96; m. April 17, 1721, Isaac Pratt. 

Mary, b. Sept. 2'J, 1G98 ; d. Nov. 20, 1704. 

John, b. Dec. 5, 1700 ; m. April 17, 1721, Hannah Child. 

Lydia, b. 1702. 

Dinah, b. Sept. 5, 1705 ; m. 1722, David Goodnow. 

James, b. Dec. 27, 1707 ; m. 1727, Lydia Child, of Wat. 

Mehitabel, b. 1710. 

Benjamin, b. Aug. 5, 1712 ; m. Martha . 

Stephen, b. May 5, 1715 ; m. Ruth Child. 



Samuel Fay m. May IG, 1699, Tabitha Ward, dau. of Increase 
and Record Ward, b. May IG, 1G75. He d. previous to 1749. Two 
only of his children are recorded in Marl. 

Rebecca, b. Feb. 19, 1700 ; m. William Nurse, of Shrewsbury. 
Tabitha, b. Aug. 14, 1702 ; m. William Maury, of Brookfiehl. 
Samuel, bap. May G, 1705 ; m. Deliverance Shattuck, of Wat. He 

had 24 children — 14 by his first wife and 10 by a second. 
Jeduthan, b. June 7, 1707 ; m. 1739, Sarah Shattuck, of Wat. 
Jlbigail, b. Jan. 19, 1709; m. Thomas Converse, of Killingly, Ct. 
Ebenezer, b. April 12, 1713. 
Mary, b. March 28, 1720 ; d. unm. prior to 1746. 



David Fat m. May 1, 1G99, Sarah Larkin. He settled in that 
part of Marl, which was set oif to Southborough. 

John, b. Jan. 30, 1700 ; d. Dec. 23, 1704. 

Joanna, b. Dec. 7, 1701 ; d. Nov. 22, 1720. 

Sarah, b. March 1, 1704; m. Nov. 12, 1729, Ebenezer Pike. 

David, b. March 25, 1707 ; d. Oct. 4, 1720. 

Lois,h. March 11, 1709. 

John, b. Dec. 16, 1710 ; m. Thankful . 

Moses, b. Oct., 1712 ; m. Mary ; resided in South. 

Robert, b. July 30, 1715 ; was twice m. and had 20 children ; r. in 

South. 

Edward, b. May 16, 1717; m. Sarah- ; r. in South. 

Jlaron, b. April 18, 1719; was twice m. and had 20 children; r. in 

South. 
Joanna, b. July 3, 1721. 
David, b. April 6, 1723 ; m. Jemima . He settled in that part of 

Leicester, which became Paxton. 



Gekshom Fay m. Mary Brigham, dau. of John, of Sud. He was 
one of the first settlers in that part of Marl, which is now included in 
North. Without removing his habitation, he was an inhabitant of 
three towns in succession — Marl., West, and North. He d. Nov. 24, 
1720. The heroic conduct of his wife is described in the genealogy 
of the Brighams. 

Gershom, b. Sept. 17, 1 703 ; m. Hannah . 

Mary, b. July 10, 1705 ; m. George Smith. 

Susanna, b. Nov. 18, 1707. She was subject to a constant nervous 

trembling, caused, it was supposed, by the mother's fright by the 

Indians, before her birth. 
Sarah, b. Oct. 2, 1710; m. Timothy Billings. 

Silas, b. Aug. 12, 1713 ; m. Hannah . 

Timothy, b. June 26, 1716; m. 1738, Lydia Tomblin ; r. North. 
Paul, b. Aug. 1721 ; m. Rebecca Rice ; r. North. 



1- 2 

3 
4 

5 
() 

7 



1- 2 

4 

G 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 



1- 2 
3 

4 



361 

The Fays residing in the southerly and westerly part of the orig- 
inal township, and most of them being set off with Westboroiigh and 
Southborough, we have a very imperfect record of them in Marl., and 
as our plan does not embrace the genealogies of other towns, we give 
but a meagre sketch of the Fay family. But as several individuals 
of this family returned to Marl., we give what the records supply. 

Levi Fay, a son of John Fay, who m. Thankful, (No. 32 in this 
table,) m. Lucretia Howe. She d. June 11, 1778, and he m. Nov. 18, 
1779, Elizabeth Hudson, dau. of John and Elizabeth. He moved to 
Coos County, N. H. Ho d. Oct. 10, 1805. 

Caty, b. Aug. 9, 1773 ; d. young. 
Lydia, b. Oct. 21, 1775 : m. Aug. 21, 1794, Eli Wood. 
Lucretia, b. March 3, 1778; m. 1st, Jan. 17, 1799, Silas Felton, and 
2d, Lovell Barnes. 

fj[;/^^^''*'^b. July 24, 1781. 

Sarah, b. Feb. 12, 1783. 8 Caty, b. May 24, 1789. 



John Fay, brother to Levi, m. Dec. IG, 1779, Lovina Brigham, and 
had in Marl. Windsor, b. July 15, 1780. 



MicAJAii Fay, son of Moses, (No. .33 in this table,) m. Susanna , 

and had, as per Marl. Records, 1 1 children ; tiius sustaining the fruit- 
fulness of the Fay family. 

Mekitabd, b. Feb. 10, 1778. 3 Hannah, b. Dec. 18, 17^9. 

Susanna, b. Nov. 27, 1783. 5 Silas, b. Dec. 24, 1785. 

Prudence, b. June 29, 1788. 7 Jielscy, b. Jan. 29, 1791. 

Lucy, b. June 22, 1793. 

JJbraluim, ^ 

Isaac, > b. March IG, 179G. 

Jacob, 5 

Elsie, b. Dec. 17, 1798. 



Josiah Fay, grandson of John, who m. Hannah Child, (No. 13, in 
this table,) m. Hopzibeth Collins, and had five children in South. 
After he came to Marl, he had five more. He d. Feb. 18, 1845, aged 
86. She d. Aug. 19, 1853, aged 8G. 

Josiah, b. Aug. 2G, 1788. 

Mtbby, b. Sept. 19, 1790; m. Feb. G, 1811, William Howe, of Marl. 

Mark, b. Jan. 29, 1793; m. 1817, Sophia Brigham, dau. of Jot ham 

Brigham. He has had William H., b. 1820 ; Charles L., b. 1822 ; 

Sidney G., b. 182.5, and 4 daughters. 
Mary, b. Feb. 27, 179G ; m. April 2, 1817, Ashley Bartlett 
Peter Bent, b. May 24, 1798 ; d. July 24, 1831. 
Sally, b. July 30, 1801 ; m. Jan. 9, 1821, Aaron Brigham. 
Hcpziheth, b. March 13, 1803; m. April 17, 1825, Calvin Clisbee. 

George W., b. May 12, 1805 ; m. Amanda A. . 

Jarob A., b. Dec. 14, 1808. 

Jidius A,, b. Oct. 15, 1812 ; went South as a teacher. 



THE FELTON FAMILY. 

This family has been quite numerous in Marl., but cannot be classed 
among its earliest settlers. They came from Salem, or rather from 
that part which now constitutes Danvers. Their early genealogy is a 



362 



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3- 4 
5 

6 

7 



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9 
10 
11 
12 

13 
14 



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16 

18 
20 



3-7- 



7-22 
23 



little uncertain. Wo give the followinfr as probably correct. Nath- 
ANitL Felton was in Salem, 1&V3. lie was then 17 years old, con- 
sequently was b. in England, 16 IG. lie went back to Eng. ]f)31, and 
on the year following (1635) returned with his mother, Ellen, and 
brother Benjamin, and settled in Salem. Benjamin, by his wife 
Mary, had John, bap, Jan. 26, 1640; Remember, bap. May 28, 1G43 ; 
Benjamin, bap. May 18, 1646. 

Nathaniel Felton was the ancestor of the Marl. Feltons. lie d. 
in Salem, 1705, aged 01. He m. there and had among other children, 
John, throujjh whom the Marl, line descended. 



John Felton m. 1670, Mary Tompkins, and had among other chil- 
dren, Samuel. 

Samuel Felton m. 1709, Sarah Goodale. They had 9 children. 
We set down as one of them, Jlrchelaus, though he may have been a 
nephew of Samuel. 

f Jacob, b. 1712 ; m, Sarah Barrett, and Hezadiah Howe. 

Hannah^h. 1716; m. in Marl. Moses Howe, and was the mother of 

Dea. Samuel Howe. 
'^David, b. 1720; m. Oct. 28, 1747, Zeruiah Howe. 
\Archelaus, b. 1739 ; he was twice married. 

Jacob Felton, the third child of Samuel, came to Marl, about 
1738, and m. soon after, Sarah Bnrrett, dan. of Thomas and Elizabeth. 
She d. 1742, aged 27, and he m. July 27, 1749, Hezadiah Howe, dan. 
of Ephraim and Elizabeth (Rice) Howe. She d. Feb. 25, 1819, aged 
93 years and 1 1 months. He d. Nov. 20, 1789, aged 77. He was 
selectman, and a Lieut. 

John, b. Nov. 9, 1741 ; m. Jan. 23, 1766, Persia Rogers, He settled 

in Marlborough, N. II. 
Sarah, b. Feb, 14, 1750 ; m, 1776, Dudley Hardy. 
\Slephen, b. Sept. 14. 1752; m. July 17, 1775, Levina Stow. 
Silas, b. Nov. 15, 1754 ; d. Sept. 4. 1775. 
Matthias, b. March 28, 1756; m. 1781, Sarah Maynard. He moved 

to Fitzwilliam, N. H. 
Lucy, b. July 23, 1760; m. June 11, 1778, Theopilus Hardy. 
\Joel, b. May 14, 17(52; m. Nov. 19, 1787, Susanna Hunt, of Sud. 



David Felton m. Oct. 28, 1747, Zeruiah Howe, dau. of Gershom 
and Hannah Howe. He moved to Petersham. 

Zeruiah, b. Nov. 24, 1748 ; d. Dec. 27, 1755. 
Jeanne, b. Nov. 28, 1750. 17 Daniel, b. Sept. 19, 1752. 

Rachel, b. Sept. 23, 1754. 19 Zeruiah, b. Nov. 15, 1756. 

Tomasine b. Nov. 28, 1758. 21 George Webber, b. April 20, 1761. 



Archelaus Felton m. Elizabeth Hunter, dau. of Edward and 
Tabitha Hunter. She d. Feb. 9, 1774, and he m. Sept. 1.5, 1774, 
Lydia Newton, dau. of Micah and Mary Newton. He d, March 30, 
1825, aged 85; and she d, Dec, 29, 1834, aged 85, He was a soldier 
in the French war ; and was for a long period one of the assessors of 
Marl, I am not certain whether he was a son, or a relative of Samuel. 



Bctfjf, h. Nov. 11, 1766; m. June 7, 1787, John Weeks. 
^William, b, Oct, 4, 1768; m, Caty Hunt, of Sud. 



363 



Sarah, b. Sept. 8, 1770 ; m. Aaron Morse, and moved to Cherry Val- 
ley, N. Y. 

John, b. April 27, 1772; m. Oct. 12, 1794, Olive Piper. He moved 
first to Cavendish, Vt., and aflcrjvards to New York State, and was 
accidentally drowned, 1822. 



Stephen Felton m. July 17, 1775, Levina Stow, dau. of Daniel 
and Lucy (Goodnow) Stow. He d. Nov. 3, 1827, aged 75 ; and she 
d. March 6, 1842, aged 87 years. 

jSilas, b. Feb. 24, 177G; m. June, 17, 17i)9, Lucretia Fay. 

Elijah, b. Feb. 13, 1778; d. March 22, 1778. 

Salltj, b. June 18, 1779 ; d. Feb. 21, 1780. 

\WiUiam, b. April 15, 1781 ; m. Lois Bartlett. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 4, 1783; m. Feb. 20, J 804, Luther Wood; r. Hunting- 
ton, Ct., where she d. 1827. 

\Mion, b. May 16, 1780; m. Sept. 15, 1807, Lydia Bigelow. 

Jacob, b. Nov. 16, 1790; m. June 16, 1814, Lucinda Wilkins ; r. in 
Berlin. 

Sleplien, b. July 10, 1795 ; m. Oct. 7, 1820, Sally Weeks ; r. at Mas- 
sena, N. Y. 



Joel Felton m. Nov. 19, 1787, Susanna Hunt, of Sud. He d. 
June 2, 1829, aged 67 ; she d. Oct. 16, 1841, aged 75. 

Susanna, b. Oct. 29, 1788 ; ni. Nov. 26, 1809, Edward Rice. 

Luther, b. April 28, 1790 ; moved to Boston. 

Joel, b. April 17, 17!)2; went first to Boston, and then to Bolton, 
where he now resides. 

George, b. May 3, 179(5; m. 1st, 1828, Betsey Hunting, and 2d, Ra- 
chel Perkins. 

Levi, b. June 17, 1799 ; moved to Chelmsford. 

Sally, b. Oct. 18, 1800 ; d. Sept. 27, 1804. 

JVewell, b. May 3, 1803 ; went West, and d. at Cincinnati, (^hio, 1841. 

Matthias, b. Oct. 25, 1805 ; resides in Millbury, where he has been 
selectman. 

John, b. July 22, 1808; resides in Boston. 



William Felton m. Caty Hunt, sister of the wife of Joel Felton. 
She d. June 3, 1833, aged 60. 

Daniel, b. April 23, 1792; d. April 18, 1815. 

Caty, b. Dec. 16, 1794 ; m. Oct. 17, 1817, Isaac T. Stevens, and has 

had 13 children. 
If'iUiam, b. Feb. 17, 1796; m. Mary Ann Stow. 
Elizabeth, h. Feb. 19, 1805; in. James Potter; resides in North. 

Edward, b. , 1807 ; m. Lydia Ann Stone. 

Susan, b. ; m. William Giles. 



Silas Felton m. June 17, 1799, Lucretia Fay, dau. of Levi and 
Lucretia (Howe) Fay. He d. Aug. 16, 1828, and his wid. m. April 13, 
1831, Col. Lovewell Barnes. Silas Felton commenced trade at the 
Mills, where he resided till his death. He became one of the most 
popular men in the town, and filled all the prominent offices in the 
gift of his townsmen — was selectman 11 years, town clerk 12 years, 
and assessor 17 years. He represented the town in the Legislature, 
and was a Justice of the Peace. His fellow citizens honored him by 
giving his name to the village, which he had zealously labored to 
build up — hence the name " Feltonville." 



36J: 



2G-49 
50 
51 



10-29- 



29-52 
53 
54 
55 

56 
57 

58 



10-31- 



31-59 

GO 
GI 
G2 
G3 
G4 
65 



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3 
4 
5 
G 



Alonzo, b. Feb. 14, 1801; d. April 1, 1801. 

Harriet, b. Feb. 20, 1802 ; m. Nov. 15,. 1821, George E. Manson. 
Charlotte, b. March 10, 1804 ; m. 1827, George W. Cook. He d. and 
she m. Silas Stewart. 



William Felton m. Lois Bartlett, dau. of Antipas. He d. July 
13, 1856, aged 75. She d. Oct. 25, 1857, aged 72. 

Sully H., b. June 26, 1809 ; m. Abel Brigham. 

Lucy, b. Sept. 17, 1811; m. Leander Bigelow. 

jrUliajn Orison, b. Aug. 27, 1813 ; d. April 22, 1833, unin. 

Cyrus, b. Nov. 20, 1815 ; m. Eliza R. Fay. 

Elijah, b. Nov. 9, 1819. 

Jane, b. Feb. 25, 1822; m. Charles H. Brigham. 

Lois JiTiite, b. May 18, 1824 ; d. May 19, same year. 



Aaron Felton m. Sept. 15, 1807, Lydia Bigelow, dau. of Gershom. 
He d. Dec. 13, 1827, and she m. William F. Holyoke. 

Jlaron H., b. Feb. 2, 1808 ; m. Martha A. Baker. 
Addison, b. March 27, 1810; d. March 11, 1818. 
Li/dia, h. March 9, 1812; d. Feh. 5, 1818. 
Lovina, b. Feb. 13, 1817 ; m. Lewis T. Frye. 
Lyman B., b. Oct. 20, 1819 ; m. Eleanor Baker. 
Lambert A., b. March 8, 1822 ; m. Harriet Bliss. 
Lewis, b. Feb. 26, 1824 ; m. Mary L. Stow. 



THE FOEBUSII FAMILY. 

This name has undergone several changes, since it first appeared 
in the country. At first it was yvni\er\ jfarruhas, tlien Furbush, For- 
bush, and sometimes Forbes. Forbush does not appear on the Records 
till 1()81, when Daniel and Deborah Forbush are found in Marl. We 
give the record of the family as we find it. 

Daniel Ffarrabas and Rebecca Perriman were m. at Cambridge, 
March 26, 1660. 

Daniel, b. at Cambridge, March 20, 1664. 

\Thomas, b. at Cambridge, March 7, 1667; m. Dorcas Rice. 

Elizabeth, b. at Cambridge, March 1(5, 1(569. 

Rebecca, b. at Concord, Feb. 15, 1672; m. Byles. 

Samuel, ; b. m. March 8, 1699, Abigail Rice. He d. aged 92. 

Rebecca, wife of Daniel Ffarrabas, d. at Cambridge, May 3, ^ 
1677. 

Daniel Ffarrabas and Deborah Rcdiat were m. at Concord, 
May 23, 1(579. At Marl, we find the children of Daniel and 
Deborah Forbush, as follows : 

|Jo/ui, b. 1(581; m. Nov. 30, 1704, Martha Bowker. 

Isaac, b. Oct. 30, 1682. 

\Jonatlmn, b. March 12, 1684 ; ui. Hannah . 

Daniel Ffarrabas d. Oct. 1687. — County Records. 

Alex. Stewart and Mrs. Deborali Fairowbush, both of Marl., were 
m. May 22, 16SS.— County Records. 



365 



Thomas Forbush m. Dorcas Rice, dau. of Edward and Anna. Ho 
resided at Marl, and last at Westboro', in which latter town, he was 
one of tiie founders of the church in Oct. 1724. 

Jhtron, b. April 13, 1(J!»3; m. Jan. 13, 1719, Susanna Morse. 
Thomas, b. Oct. 14, l()i)5; m. Jan. G, 1719, Hannah Bellows. 
Tahithn, b. April ti, 1Gi)l); m. Nov. 24, 172G, SanmeJ Hardy. 
Rebecca, h. Feb. 25, 1701 ; m. Jan. 29, 1720, Simeon Howard. 
Eunice, b. Feb. 13, 1705. 



John Forbush m. Nov. 30, 1704, Martha Bowkcr. 

\John, b. Nov. 5, 1710; m. Oct. 27, 1732, Eunice Houghton. 
Martha, b. May 25, 1714 ; m. Jan. 23, 1734, John Gold. 
f David, b. Jan. 5, 1718 ; m. Ruth . 



Jonathan Forbush m. Hannah HoUoway, 170(1. He resided near 
Stirrup Brook, and was either set off to West., in the division of the 
town, or else moved to West., where he was a Dea., and took the name 
of Forbes. A Boston newspaper thus announced his death : " Deacon 
Jonathan Forbes, of Westboro', died March 24, 17(i8, aged 84 — father 
of the Rev. Eli Forbes, of Brookfield. His sister, (the Deacon's sister,) 
Mrs. Rebecca Byles, died at Westboro', Jan. 28, 17(58, aged 94, lack- 
ing one month. A short time before,' his brother Samuel died, in his 
92d year. A sister is living in her 82d year, and a sister, the hali'-blood, 
in her 80th year." 



Manj, b. Dec. 31, 1706. 
Daniel, b. Oct. 23, 1710. 
Jonathan, b. Feb. 3, 1715. 
Patience, b. Feb. 2(i, 1720. 
Eli,h. Oct.2(), 1720; grad 



19 Dinah, b. July 29, 1708. 

21 Thankful, b. Dec. 1, 1712. 

23 Mifrail, h. Feb. 17, 1718. 

25 Phinthas, b. March 4, 1721. 
H. C. 1751, ordained at Brookfield, 17.52. 
He m. 1752, Mary Parkman, dau. of Rev. Ebenczer and Mary 
(Champney) Parkuian, of Westboro'. He asked a dismission from 
his people at Brookfield in 1775, and was settled at Gloucester the 
year following, and d. at that place, Dec. 14, 1804, in his 79th year. 



John Forbush m. Oct. 27, 1732, Eunice Houghton. 
Hayinah, b. Jan. 23, 1734. 28 Martha, b. Nov. 12, 1735. 



David Forbush m. Ruth , and had Sarah, b. Jan. 15, 1738. 

The Forbushes settling generally in Westboro', their record in Marl, 
is anything but full. 



FOSGATE. — Jacob Fosgate, by wife Mary, had Lois, b. Sept. 
1745. 



FOSKET.— Robert Fosket, by wife Sarah, had Sarah, b. 1731. 



FOSTER.— Jacob Foster, by wife Mary, had Jacob, b. 1717. 



Nathan Foster, by wife Abigail, had Cooleds:e,h. 1793; J^atlian, 
b. 1795 ; Elizabeth, b. 1799 ; Ira, b. 1802 ; Mary^h. 1804. 



FRANKLTN.— Benjamin Frankijn, by Avife Phebe, had Mary, 
b. July 3, 1G90; John, b. Sept. 12, 1G92. He was engaged in Marl, 
as a teacher of youth at an early day. 



GARFIELD. — Benjamin Garfield, by wife Bethiah, had Tabitha, 
b. 1711 ; Sarah, b. 17 IG; Benjamin, b. May 6, 1718. 

47 



366 



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8 
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10 
11 
12 
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14 



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17 

18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 



THE GATES FAMILY. 

Stephen Gates was in Hingham, 1G38. He moved first to Cam- 
bridge, and then to Lancaster. He d. 1062, and his widow, Ann, m. 
about 1603, Richard Woodward, of Watertown, and d. at Stow, Feb. 
5, 1683. His sons, like himself, were engaged in land speculation. 

Stephen, m. Sarah, by whom he had 8 children, the two youngest of 
whom were b. in Marl.; Sarah, b. 1079, and Rebecca, b. ]082. In 
1673 he bought 300 acres of land on Assabet River in Stow, where 
he d. 1707, leaving descendants in that place. 

Thomas, m. 1670, in Sud., Elizabeth Freeman. He resided in Sud., 
Stow, and a short time in Marl., where Elizabeth and Sarah were b. 
in 1671 and 1673. 

^Simon, m. Margaret, and had 8 children. 

Mary, m. April 5, 1658, John Maynard, of Sud. While in Lancaster, 
she was publicly " admonished for bold and unbecoming speeches 
used in public assembly on the Lord's day, especially against Mr. 
Rowlandson, minister of God's word there." 



Simon Gates bought of Maj. Gookin's heirs, in 1693, land on 
" Ockoocangansett Hill." He resided in Cambridge, Lancaster, and 
elsewhere. 

\Simon, b. Jan. 5, 1676. 



Simon Gates, b. Jan. 5, 1676; m. May 29, 1710, Sarah Woods, 
dau. of John and Lydia Woods, of Marl. He d. March 10, 1735. 

Simon, b. Dec. 11, 1710 ; m. 1749, Sarah Howe ; moved to Worcester. 
Sarah, b. Oct. 15, 1712 ; m. Feb. 3, 1736, Eph. Church, of Rutland. 
Susanna, b. Dec. 19, 1714; m. John Phelps, and moved to Rutland. 
^Stephen, b. Aug. 8, 1718 ; m. Jan. 25, 1743, Damaris Howe. 
Solomon, b. May 14, 1721 ; m. Mary Clark, and d. in Worcester. 
Sam^iel, b. Feb. 28, 1723 ; was a soldier of the Revolution. 
^Silas, b. Feb. 3, 1727; m. May 9, 1754, Elizabeth Bragg. 
John, b. Jan. 27, 1729. 



Stephen Gates m. Damaris Howe, 1743. He moved to Rutland, 
where he d. Oct. 5, 1773. He had one child recorded in Marl. 



Silvanus, b. May 25, 1748, who resided in Spencer. 



Silas Gates m. May 9, 1754, Elizabeth Bragg. He d. Aug. 25, 
1793. She d. March 20, 1806, aged 74. He commanded a com- 
pany, which turned out and marched to Cambridge on the Lexington 
alarm, 1775. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 9, 1754 ; m. Elizur Holyoke. 

Lydia, b. Aug. 31, 1756 ; m. Feb. 13, 1782, Abraham Beaman, and d. 

in Maine. 
\Silas, b. June 30, 1758 ; m. Nov. 11, 1783, Catharine Williams. 
Sainuel, b. Aug. 16, 1760; m. Feb. 25, 1781, Lucretia Williams. 
\William, b. April 8, 1702 ; m. Jan. 13, 1784, Jerusha Goodnow. 
John, b. May 14, 1765 ; m. 1787, Abigail Ball. 

Elizabeth, ? u a i tq 17^0 . S "!• Apollos Cushing ; moved to Me. 
Mai~y, ^ • P"" ' i^' young. 

Susanna, b. June 21, 1771 ; m. April 12, 1812, William Arnold as his 

3d wife. 



367 



Silas Gates m. Catharine Williams, dau. of George and Molly 
Williams. He d. Dec. 24, 1828, aged 70, and she d. Nov. 28, 183(j, 
aged 76. He kept the old Williams tavern, near the Pond, many 
years. He made a bequest of $1,000 to an Academy in Marlborough. 

^6ra/i«m, b. March 1, 1775; m. June 10, 1812, Elizabeth Brigham, 
dau. of Daniel. He d. July 22, 1829, without issue, and she m» 
Sept. 13, 1831, Stephen R. Phelps. He, like his father, gave $1,000 
to endow the Academy in Marl. 

Catharine, b. Jan. 18, 1793 ; m. Dec. 3, 1815, Thomas Dunton. 



William Gates m. 1784, Jerusha Goodnow. She d. 1784, and he 
m. 2d, Sept. 20, 1786, Elizabeth Howe. He d. Jan. 12, 1848, aged 
86. She d. April 2, 1842, aged 78. He Avas a leading man in town, 
was Captain of the Militia, and filled important town offices. 

Mary, b. Nov. 27, 1784 ; m. May 19, 1805, Aaron Stevens. 

Jerusha, b. Dec. 12, 1786 ; m. Sept. 6, 1815, Joel Howe. 

Lijdia, h. Oct. 11, 1788; m. 1817, Edward Rice. 

Mtncy, b. Oct. 19, 1790 ; m. May 27, 1810, Daniel Brigham. 

JVilliam, b. Nov. 12, 1792 ; d. young. 

mUiam D., b. Sept. 23, 1808; m. Feb. 3, 1842, Sally Newton. 



GIBBS. — Nathaniel Gibbs was in Marl., and by wife Hannah, 
had Eunice, b. June 10, 1769; JVdthaniel, b. April 13, 1771 ; Rufus, 
b. Aug. 27, 1772. 



GIBBON.— Samuel Gibbon and Abigail, his wife, came to Marl, 
from Dedham, Dec, 1784. She d. July 19, 1787, and he m. 2d, Sept. 

21, 1790, Elizabeth Perkins, who d. April 23, 1800, and he m. 3d, Feb. 

22, 1801, Abigail Cogswell. She d. March 31, 1826, and he d. Jan. 
12, 1833, aged 74 years. He was a trader, a prominent citizen, 
and many years a Justice of the Peace. He represented the town 
in the Legislature. 

J^abby, b. Aug. 16, 1785 ; d. April 15, 1789. 

Samu'el, b. Feb. 18, 1787 ; d. July 7, 1787. 

Samuel, b. June 29, 1791 ; d. Dec. 6, 1816, at Charleston, S. C. 

George, b. May 1, 1793; m. 1829, Caroline Perkins. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 15, 1795 ; m. 1823, E. H. Little. 

Edward, b. Aug. 21, 1797 ; d. Sept. 2, 1819. 

Caroline, b. July 18, 1799 ; d. Aug. 26, 1804. 

JVilliam, b. June 9, 1802 ; d. March 22, 1803. 

Migail C, b. Nov. 19, 1803 ; m. 1833, Rev. Josiah K. Wait. 

Henry, b. Nov. 29, 1805 ; d. Dec. 25, 1825. 

William, b. July 25, 1807 ; m. 1835, Eunice Wilson. 

John, b. May 22, 1809. 



THE GLEASON FAJMILY. 

The Gleasons were numerous in Sudbury, and one branch of the 
family settled in Framingham. It is probable that the Gleasons of 
Marlborough descended from the Sudbury family, though I have not 
been able to trace the descent. 

James Gleason m. Nov. 24, 1713, Mary Barrett. 

Daniel, b. May 23, 1715; d. March 26, 1715. 

Mary, b. Jutie 2, 1716. 4 Sarah, b. March 10, 1718. 



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Abigail, b. June 2, 1722 ; m. Nov. 12, 1741, Peter Dudley. 

jJohn, b. Dec. 7, 1724 ; m. Dec. 18, 1755, Persia Howe. 

\joseph, b. Dec. 13, 1726. 

Zaccheus, b. Dec. 17, 1728; d. June 27, 1730. 

Submit, b. May 13, 1733. 

Martha, b. Dec. 23, 1734 ; d. May 3, 1793. 



John Gleason m. Dec. 18, 1755, Persis Howe. He d. Nov. 13, 
1816, aged 91. She d. July 18, 1820, aged 92. They lived together 
over sixty years. 

\John, b. Feb. 19, 17.58; m. April 17, 1781, Experience Stow. 

Mai-y, b. Jan 10, 1763; m. Zaccheus Gleason, 1789. 

Anna, b. Oct. 11, 1770 ; m. Sept. 15, 1791, Matthias ll. Brigham. 



He d. May 14, 1805, aged 78. 



Joseph Gleason m. Persis — 
She d. Aug. 25, 1812. 

Suza, b. Feb. 27, 1757. 

\James, b. Dec. 26, 1759; m. Oct. 12, 1788, Anna Phelps. 

Mindwell, b. May 18, 1761 ; d. unm. 

Zaccheus, b. Dec. 23, 1762 ; m. Sept. 8, 1789, Mary Gleason. She d. 

1835. 
Sarah, b. Oct. 5, 1764 ; m. May 12, 1791, Sylvanus Howe. 
Rhoda, b. July 17, 1766; m. Oct. 19, 1786, Christopher B. Bigelow. 
\Silas, b. July 5, 1768 ; m. Jan. 25, 1792, Elizabeth Howe. 
Obadiah, b. Jan. 24, 1772. 

Joseph, b. Jan. 2, 1774 ; m. Sept. 11, 1800, Abigail Howe. 
Persis, b. Aug. 26, 1775 ; d. unm. 
JVathaniel, b. July 23, 1779 ; went to Lancaster, N. H. 



John Gleason m. April 17, 1781, Experience Stow. She d. Feb. 
27, 1835, aged 73. Another record makes her death Sept. 3, 1836, 
aged 76. He d. Nov. 8, 1828, aged 70. 

Samuel, b. June 1, 1782 ; m. Mrs. Dexter Howe, 

Francis, b. Feb. 11, 1785; m. March 16, 1807, Persis Howe, dau. of 

Archelaus and Lucy. He d. 1840. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 5, 1788 ; m. March 30, 1808, James Bayley. 



James Gleason m. Anna Phelps. He d. July 3, 1841, aged 82. 
She d. Sept. 3, 1836, aged 76. 

Joel, b. Feb. 11, 1789; m. 1st, June 14, 1819, Mary Brown, 2d, Miss 

Oakes. 
Siah, b. May 11, 1791 ; m. March 23, 1824, Almira Oakcs. 
Phebe, b. Dec. 10, 1792; m. Lewis Goodnow, of Stow. 
Roxa, b. March 11, 1795 ; m. Nov. 1, 1812, Jabez Howe. 
Lucy, b. March 3, 1799 ; d. unm. 

Anna, b. Feb. 10, 1801 ; m. Sept. 20, 1829, Luke Rice. 
Benjamin, b. April 2, 1803 ; d. young. 



Silas Gleason m. Elizabeth Howe, 1792. He moved from Marl. 



Dorothy, b. Sept. 5, 1793. 
Jerry, b. June 5, 1796. 



36 Elizabeth B., b. Sept. 20, 1794. 
38 Susanna, b. Oct. 29, 1797. 



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THE GODDARD FAMILY. 

Though the Goddards were numerous in Framinghain and in 
VVatertown, there is some ditficulty in tracing the line of tlic family 
of this name in the Marl. Records. According to the best informa- 
tion I can obtain, this is the line of descent. William Goddard, of 
London, m. Elizabeth Miles about 1G50. He came to America in 
1665, and settled in Watertown, where he was famous as a teacher. 
His three oldest sons were b. in London, though he had 4 children b. 
in Watertown. His youngest son, Josiah, b. about 1(J72, m. 1(J9(>, 
Rachel Davis, of Roxbury. He d. in Wat., 1720. He had 1» chil- 
dren, among whom was fVilliam, b. about 1703, and he was tlie Wil- 
liam of Marl. 

William Goddard m. Jan. 20, 1720, Keziah Cloyes, of Framing- 
ham. He was a farmer and miller, and lived in that part of Marl, 
now included in Berlin. He had 11 children. 



Mai-y, b. Jan. 2, 1727; m. John Houghton, of Brattlcboro', Vt. 

Josiah, b. July 25, 1729 ; m. Lydia Ball ; resided in North. 

James, b. Jan. G. 1731 ; m. Hannah Rice. 

Rachel, b. April 21, 1732 ; in. Asa Howe. 

Solomon, b. May 11, 1734 ; m. 1758, Thankful Bowers ; lived in North. 

Hannah, b. Jan. 27, 173G ; in. Collister, of Marl., N. J I. 

Lydia, b. Sept. 4, 1737 ; probably m. Elij)halct Stone, of Marl., N. II. 
Jane, b. March 12, 1739 ; m. William Barker, of Marl., N. H. 
John, b. Dec. 9, 1740 ; m. June 20, 17G0, Lucy Walker, of Bolton, Ct. 
Moses, b. Nov. 21, 1742 ; m. Molly Walker, and settled in Ct. 
Ruth, b. Feb. 8, 1744 ; m. Jacob Rice, of Henniker, N. H. 



GOLD. — John Gold, or Gould, by wife Martha Forbush, had 
Jhina, b. April 10, 1734; Martha, b. Jan. 25, 1730. 



GOLDING.— Peter Golding, by wife Sarah, had Peter, b. Oct. 
24, 1088. 



THE GOODALE family. 

Robert Goodale embarked at Ipswich, Eng., with Katharine, his 
wife, April, 1(!34, — he in his 31st and she in hor 29th year. They 
brought with them three children — Mary, 4 years, Abraham, 2 years, 
and Isaac, months. 

Mary, b. 1 030. 3 Mraimm, b . 1 032. 

Isaac, b. 1033; m. and had seven children. 
\Zachariah, b. 1039 ; m. Elizabeth Bercham. 

Jacob, b. . 7 Sarah, b. . 

Elizabeth, b. . 9 Hannah, b. . 



Zachariaii Goodale m. Elizabeth Bercham. 
11 children. 



They had in Salem 



ZucJutnah, b. . 1 1 Samuel, b. — 

Joseph, b. . 13 Mary, b. — 

Thomas, b. . 15 JUnaliam, b. 

\Jokn, b. 1079; m. Elizabeth Witt, Sept. 8, 1703. 

\Benjamin, b. ; m. Hannah . 

\David, b. ; m. Abigail Eliot. 19 Elizabeth, b. 

Sarah, b. . 



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John Goodale m. Sept. 8, 1703, Elizabeth Witt, who d. July 29, 

1738, and he m. 2d, Elizabeth . He d. May 11, 1752, in his 73d 

year, and his M'idow survived him only 17 days, and d. in her 65th 
year. He came to Marl, about 1702. His will, dated 1751, mentions 
wife Elizabeth, dau. Elizabeth, son Nathan, and children of son 
Solomon, late of Brookfield. 

Solomon, b. May 24, 1707 ; m. Anna , and moved to Brookfield, 

where he d. 1750. 
\J\rathan, b. June 10, 1709 ; m. Persis Whitney. 
Elizabeth, b. Aug. 29, 1715 ; m. 1733, Joseph Goodale. ? 



Benjamin Goodale m. Hannah . His will, dated Feb. 26, 

and proved April 15, 1754, makes no mention of his wife, who prob- 
ably d. before that time ; but mentions sons Phinehas, Edward, and 
Benjamin, the last of whom he appoints Executor ; and dau. Ruth Gary, 
and Sarah Gary, and children of dau. Elizabeth Harthorn, deceased. 

Elizahefh, b. Feb. 26, 1711 ; m. April 30, 1730, Ebene^er Harthorn. 
Phinehas, b. May 1, 1713 ; m. 1733, Rebecca Bruce, of Woburn. 

Edward, b. May 23, 1715 ; m. Sarah , and r. in Shrewsbury. 

Hannah, b. May 3, 1717 ; m. John Tainter. 

Manj, b. April 30, 1719 ; m. Josiah Howe. 

Ruth, b. July 10, 1721 ; m. April IQ, 1741, Joseph Gary, Princeton. 

Benjamin, b. May 7, 1723 ; d. young. 

Sarah, b. July 1, 1726 ; m. Aaron Gary, Princeton. 

Benjamin, b. Oct. 7, 1728. 



David Goodale m. Abigail Elliot, and had Abigail, b. 1714 ; 
David, b. 1716. This latter David is probably the David Goodale of 
Marl., who rn. Dec. 17, 1748, Elizabeth Brigham. This is all I learn 
of the family. She d. June 20, 1798. 



Nathan Goodale m. Persis Whitney, dau. of Benjamin and Sarah 
(Barrett) Whitney, of Marl. He d. Jan. 14, 1780, known as the 
" hard winter," and such was the depth of snow, that his remains were 
drawn to the grave-yard on a hand-sled by men on rackets, though 
the yard was several miles distant from his residence. 

\JVaihan, b. March 14, 1737 ; m. Dinah Weeks. 

Timothi/, b. Jan. 20, 1739; d. Feb. 11, 1739. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 25, 1740 ; m. Oct. 15, 17()0, Josiah Winn. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 15, 1742 ; m. 1761, Josiah Ward, and moved to Hen- 
niker, N. H. 

Solomon, b. Sept. 19, 1744; m. Sept. 17, 1766, Mehitabel Burnap, 
who d., and he m. Persis Bailey. They resided first in Athol, and 
afterwards in Wardsboro', Vt., where he d. 1815. 

Persis, b. Nov. 7, 1745. 

David, b. Aug. 14, 1749 ; perhaps m, Dorothy, and moved to Shrews. 

Miriam, b. July 14, 1751 ; m. April 15, 1772, Elisha Allen, and d. 1843. 

Lucy, b. July 3, 1753; m. Nov. 5, 1770, Otis Howe, and d. 1813. 

\Jlbner, b. Aug. 22, 1755 ; m. June 16, 1779, Molly Howe. 

Timothy, b. Oct. 1 8, 1 757 ; d. 1776 in the Army. 

Levina, b. Nov. 22, 1759. 

Job, b. Aug. 20, 1762; m. 1794, Lydia Foote. He settled in Ber- 
nardston, where he d. Oct. 25, 1833. He was a Judge of the old 
Court of Sessions, and a prominent man in that County. He left 
a bequest to the Orthodox Society in Marl, of about $1,600, towards 
the support of an " Orthodox minister of the Gospel." 




JJ^^a^aO U/^hr/a>/fc^ 



^ 



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22-42- 



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49 
50 
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54 



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Nathan Goodale m. Dinah Weeks, dau. of John and Dinah. He 
d. Sept. 10, 17G2, and she m. Jotliani Sawyer, of Sterling. They 
moved to Templeton, where they both d. 

\WUlinm, b. July 9, 1757 ; m. Phebe Newton, 
f Joe/, b. Aug. 12, 17G0 ; resided at Coleraine. 



Abner Goodale m. June IG, 1779, Molly Howe, dau. of Eliakim 
and Rebecca, b. Sept. 28, 1757. She d. Nov. 15, 1818. He d. May 
IG, 1823, aged G8. He was in Capt. Gates's company, and turned out 
on the J 9th of April, 1775, and was in the campaign at White Plains. 
He served his townsmen in the various offices of constable, assessor, 
&.C. &c. He was also deacon of the church. 

JValhcm, b. April 17, 1780 ; m. May 22, 1805, Betsey Hunter. He d. 
Oct. 12, 1843. She d. Jan. 13, 1851. He was engaged many win- 
ters, as a school teacher. He had John, b. April 4, 180G; .Marif, b. 
Nov. 18, 1807; irUliam, b. Feb. IG, 1810; JValhnn M., b. June 7, 
1813 ; Bdsexj H., b. Feb. 5, 181G ; Hmnj T., b. March 2G, 1824. 

p^'//'"' J b. Oct. 12, 1782; 5 t to lam t o* .. 
PoHJ/, ^ ' ' ^ m. Jan. 19, 1810, Isaac Stratton. 

TiWoMy, b. Sept. 3, 1784; m. 1810, Polly Stratton. He resided in 
Jamaica, Vt, where he was a Deacon, and represented the town in 
the Legislature. He d. April \^, 185G. 

Betsey, b. June 17, 1787 ; m. Sept. 17, 1811, Silas Moseman. 

jrUliam, b. Feb. 22, 1789. 

David^ b. April 1, 1791 ; m. March 1.5, 1819, Millicent Warren, dau. 
of Thaddeus and Lucy Warren. He was engaged in early life as 
school teacher. He was a man of decided talents, energetic in 
character, and prominent both in the church and in the town. He 
held the office of Deacon, and filled from time to time the principal 
offices in the.town. He was a Representative in the General Court, 
and a Justice of the Peace. He d. Oct. 17, 1858; and she d. 18GI. 
They had Lucy T., b. Aug. 8, 1821 ; David B., b. Oct. 13, 1822; 
fVarren, b. July 2, 182G; Mary H., b. Nov. 12, 1829; Charles, b. 
June 14, 1832; Harriet W., b. March 23, 1836. 

Persis, b. Feb. 5, 1793 ; m. Aug. 30, 1819, John L. Parkhurst. 

Li/dm, ), pj . nn i7Qr;.S 

Lucy, I °- ^"^^^ ^^' i'^-^. ^ m. Oct. 11, 1819, Rev. Asa Thurston. 



William Goodale m. Phebe Newton, and resided in Templeton, 
had eight children, of which Rev. William Goodell, D. D., mission- 
ary to Constantinople was one. William Goodale was in service dur- 
ing a great part of the Revolution. 



Joel Goodale resided at Coleraine. 
eccentricities. 



He was a man noted for his 



There were other Goodales in Marl., whose lineage we have not 
traced ; but who undoubtedly sprang from the same parent stock. 

Ebenezer Goodale m. 1733, Rebecca Witt. Mary Witt in 17.54, 
was guardian of Rebecca Goodale, seven years old, a child of Eben- 
ezer. Ebenezer may have been a descendant of No. 15, in this table, 
through Abraham and Hannah Goodale, of Lynn. 



Joseph Goodale of Marl., m. 1733, Elizabeth Goodale, perhaps 
dau. of John and Elizabeth (Witt) Goodale. This was probably the 



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Joseph Goodale of Marl., who entered into the service in the French 
war in 1760, where he d. His will mentions wife Susanna (2d wife) 
and children, Susanna, Joseph, and Martha, all under 14 years of age. 



Ends Goodale m. 173G, Mary Angier, and had in Marl, Sarah, b. 
1737 ; Ebenezer, b. 1739; and Mary, b. 1741. He moved to Shrews- 
bury, where he had other children. 



Jonathan Goodale of Marl., made his will in 1758, in which he 
says, he is going into the expedition against Canada. He. must have 
d, soon after, for his will Avas proved in 1759. It mentions sons, Jon- 
athan and John, and wife Keturah, who the same year is put by the 
selectmen, under the guardianship of Josiah Wilkins, as a person 
non compos. 



Thomas Goodale, by wife Mary, had in Marl., Rebecca, b. 1741. 
Perhaps the Thomas who was in Southboro' in 1749. 

This name is spelt in the early records Gooddel, Goodell, Goodall 
and Goodcal ; but is now generally spelt Goodale. 



THE GOODENOW FAMILY. 

This name was common in Sud. from the first. Edward, John, and 
Thomas, supposed to be brothers, were made freemen there in lG40j 
1641, and 1643, respectively. 

Thomas Goodenow was a proprietor of Sud. 1638. He m. 1st, Jane, 
by whom he had his children, and 2d, Joanna. His will, proved 
1664, names his brother Edmund, and John Ruddocke. He petitioned 
for Marl. 1656, was there at the incorporation, and was one of the 
selectmen in 1661, '62 and '64. His house lot was bounded on the 
north and west by a highway, on the south by the house lot of Joseph 
Rice, on the eastward by the Indian Hill, or line of the Indian Plant- 
ing Field. The record of the family is incomplete. 



.1063, 



-U^ 



Thomas, b. in Sud. ; d. in Marl. Oct 

Mary, b. in Sud. Aug. 25, 1640. ^ a k> - ^ 

Abigail, born March 11, 1642; m. Thomas Biarnes, of Marl 

Susanna, h. Feb. 20, 1()43 ; d. young. 

Sarah, b. Jan. 20, 1644; d. 1654. 

]Samuel, b. Feb. 28, 1(546 ; m. Mary . 

Susanna, b. Dec. 21, 1647. 



Ko^ 



Samuel Goodenow m. Mary . He d. 1722, aged 76. His 

house was a garrison house in 1711, and was on the old road to North., 
and in what now constitutes a part of thjit town. 



Thomas, b. 1671. 

Mary, b. Dec. 15, 1673 ; killed and scalped by the Indians, 1707. 

jSamuel, b. Nov. 30, 1()75 ; m. Sarah . 

\navid, b. May 12, 1678. 



Samuel Goodenow m. Sarah . He d. .about 1720. He and 

his family fell, in the division of the town, within Westboro', and hence 
Marlborough records do not contain a full account of the family. 

\David, b. Feb. 26, 1704 ; m. Martha Banister. 
^Jonathan, b. July 16, 1706; m. Feb. 20, 1727, Lydia Rice. 
Thomas, b. May JB, 1709 ; m. April 7, 1734, Persia Rice. 
Mary, b. April 5, 1712. 



373 



David Goodenow ni. Dinah Fay, Nov. 8, 1722. He moved to 
Shrewsbury, where he had a second wife, and several children. 

Samuel, b. Nov. 2G, 1723. 



David Goodenow m. Martha Banister, Dec. 29, 1746. 

Sybil, b. May 31, 1747; m. Feb. 9, 1765, Richard Roberts, of Bolton. 

Lovina, b. Feb. 19, 1749. 

John, b. Dec. 1, 1751; m. Aug. 19, 1772, Phebe Sanders. 

Stephen, b. April 29, 17,53. 22 Mina, b. July 15, 1755. . 

Mary, b. March 18, 1757. 24 MartJia, b. April 22, 1759. 

Calvin, b. Feb. 15, 17G2. 26 Ebenezer, b. July 13, 1765. 



Jonathan Goodenow m. Feb. 20, 1727, Lydia Rice. She d. 
Dec. 4, 1747. He d. Sept. 25, 1803 ? 

Surviah, b. June 10, 1742. 

Tuhitlut, b. June 27, 1744 ; m. April 10, 1761, Zebadiah Wallis. 

Submit, b. Dec. 3, 1747 ; d. March 26, 1748. 



The Goodenows, living in Sud., West., and North., intermarried 
with the Marlborough families, and probably in many instances going 
out of town, render it difficult to trace tiiem, without having recourse 
to the records of the neighboring towns. 



THE GOTT FAMILY. 

Dr. Benjamin Gott came to Marl, about 1725, and ni. Sarah 
Brcck, dan. of Rev. Robert Breck, Feb. 4, 1728. She d. April II, 
17-10, in her 29th year, and he m. Oct. 5, 1740, Lydia Ward, of Boston. 
He d. July 25, 1751, in his 4Gth year. 

Sarah, b. March 21, 1729; m. July 12, 1750, Uriah Brigham. 
Anna, b. Jan. 8, 1731 ; m. Jan. 9, 1752, Samuel Brigham, Jr. 
Rebecca, b. Dec. 27, 1732. 
Benjamin, b. Aug. 29, 1734 ; he was a physician, and d. at Brookfield, 

Dec. 5, 1760. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 19, 1736. 
John, b. May 4, 1739 ; d. Feb. 13, 1740. 
Martha, b. Sept. 11, 1741; d. June 12, 1756. 



GORE. — Richard Gore, by wife Sarah, had Daniel, h. July 5, 
1721; TaUthu, b. April 13, 1723; John, b. Dec. 31, 1725, d. 1748; 
JVelicmiah, b. Sept. 20, 1727. 

GOULD. — Benjamin Gould, by wife Abigail, had Mary, b. Sept. 
10, 1793 ; Elizabeth, b. June 27, 1795. 



GREEN. — John Green, by wife Anna, had Phebe, b. 1706. 



Thomas Green, by wife Mary, had Mary, b. Jan. 5, 1720. 



THE HAGER FAMILY. 

William Hager, of Watertown, m. 1645, and had 10 children b. 
there, and among them two sons, Sainuel and William. 



WiLLLiAM Hager, b. Feb. 12, 1659; m. March 30, 1687, Sarah 
Benjamin, by whom he had 8 children. His fourth son was 
48 



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21 

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Ebenezer Hager, b. August 13, 1698; m. in Wat., Feb. 23, 1726, 
Lydia Barnard. He Avent first to Marl., then to Fraininghani, where 
some of his children were probably born, then returned to Marl. She 
d. Feb. 4, 1783. 

jEhenezer, b. in Fram., March 16, 1728; m. Abigail Stow. 
Lydia, b. March 4, 1730, lived in Vt. 
jH'iUiam, b. April 21, 1733; m. Sarah Stow. 

Thaddtus, b. in Marl. June 3, 1741; m. Lois Sawyer, of Bolton, and 
resided in Fram. 



Ebenezer Hager m. Dec. 26, 1753, Abigail Stow, dau. of John 
and Elizabeth, b. Aug. 7, 1734. She d. Sept. 25, 1823, aged 89. He 
d. Dec. 19, 1798. 

\Jocl, b. April 14, 1754 ; m. Lucy Barnes. 

Ashbel, b. March 29, 1756 ; d. Aug. 7, 1768. 

Elizabeth, b. March 29, 1758. 11 Mmcy, b. March 1, 1761. 

Lovice, b. Sept. 5, 1763 ; ni. 1800, Amos Darling. 

Final, b. Jan. 1, 1766; d. Aug. 20, 17(i8. 

Miriam, b. Oct. 13, 1768; d. unm. 1825. 

Abigail, b. April 12, 1771 ; m. 1791, Winslow Arnold. 

Cale, b. March 15, 1774. 



William Hager m. Sarah Stow, dau. of John and Elizabeth, Feb. 
12, 1761. She d. Dec. 17, 1804. He d. Jan. 9, 1811, aged 78. 

Ephraim, b. Feb. 16, 17(J4; m. 1689, Lucy Fairbanks, of Frani. 

Lydia, b. April 22, 1766; ni. Thomas Nixon. 

Edci; b. April 30, 1772. 

]JfHliam, b. Sept. 14, 1774; m. 1803, Nancy Parniinter. 

Martin, b. Dec. 1, 1778 ; m. 1806, Hannah Farewell. 



Joel Hager m. 1st, 1777, Hannah Morse, and 2d, Sept. 21, 1784, 
Lucy Barnes, and had in Marl., Phebe, b. Dec. 11, 1777, who in. 1801, 
Reuben Ames. 



William Hager m. 

ajred 48. 



Nancy Parminter. She d. May 24, 1828, 



Lydia, b. Aug. 15, 1804 ; d. Nov. 3, 1817. 

tlarriet, b. June 5, 1806; m. Dec. 27, 1828, Daniel W. Moore. 

yVilliam, b. Feb. 29, 1808. 

JVfmci/, b. April 17, 1809; m. June 2, 1831, John Weeks. 

Sally, b. May 18, 1811 ; m. Sept. 20, 1832, William Moore. 

Susan, b. April 6, 1813. 28 Martin, b. May 30, 1814 ; d. youn<. 

Caroline, b. July 5, 1816. 30 Martin, b. Oct. 21, 1818. 

Phebe, b. Jan. 8, 1820. 



HAGGIT.— Thomas Haggit m. April 7, 1713, Lydia Maynard, 
and had Lydia, b. 1714 ; Johanna, b. 1716. 



HALE. — Jonathan Hale, by wife Martha, had Elizabelh, b. Feb. 
25, 1735. 

Joseph Hale, by wife Lucy, had Dorothy, b. April, 9, 1760. 

Oliver Hale, by wife Dorcas, had Betsey, b. July 10, 1779. 



375 



1-4- 



1- 2 

3 
4 



HALL. — Thomas IIali,, by wifo Abifrail, had Jlhifrnil, b. Oct. 
5, 1711; John, h. July (i, 1714; Thomas, b. July (">, I71(); David, h. 
Aug. 8, 1718. 

Miles Hall, by wife Eunice, had Joseph, b. Dec. 1, 1721. 

Phinf.has Hall, by wife Mary, had Joseph, b. Juno 8, 1818; 
Zerviah, b. Sept. 15, 1802; Sally, b. Feb. 10, 1805; George M., b. 
Sept 4, 1807 ; Mary JlnneUe, b. Sept. 9, 181 1. 



4- 5 
G 

7 
8 
9 



10 
11 
12 
13 



THE HAPGOOD FAMILY. 

The Hapgoods were in Marl, before the close of the 17th century, 
and have been somewhat numerous in town. This family can be 
easily traced to the first emigrant. 

SnADRACH Hai'good, aged 14 years, embarked at Gravesend, Eng., 
May 30, KI.KI, in the Speedwell, Robert Locke, master, and settled in 
Sudbury, whore he m. Oct. 21, lti()4, Elizabeth Troadway. Iriniodi- 
ately before the breaking out of Philip's war in 1()75, the Indians near 
Quaboag, now Brooktield, manifostod a disposition to treat with the 
English, and Capt. Hutchinson, of Boston, and Capt. VVheolor, of 
Concord, with a small party of men, among whom was Shadrach Hap- 
good, wore sent to treat with them. Tiiree of the Sachems promised 
an interview on the 2d of August, 1G75, at the head of VVickaboag 
Pond. The English repaired to the spot, agreeably to the appoint- 
ment, but the Indians were not there. On proceeding further, the 
Indians, who had treacherously ambushed their path, fired upon them, 
killing or mortally wounding eight of their nuuiber. Hapgood, then 
of Sudbury, was among the slain. 

JVathaniel, h. Oct. 21, lOfiS ; m. Sept. G, l(i95, Elizabeth Ward, of 

Marl., and settled in Stow. 
Manj, b. Nov. 2, 1GG7. 
]Thomas, b. Oct. 1, 1GG9; m. Judith . 

He probably had two other children. 



Thomas Hapgood m. Judith , and settled in Marl. We find 

him in town, 1G95, acting for Edmund Rice, in relation to the Indian 
lands. He settled in the north-easterly i)art of the town, on what was 
.atlerwards known as the Col. Wesson or Spurr place. He d. Oct. 4, 
17G4, aged 95, and she d. Aug. 15, 1759. 

An English publication had this notice of his death : — " Died at 
Marlborough, New England, in the 95th year of his age, Mr. Thomas 
Hapgood. His posterity were very numerous; viz., 9 children; 92 
grand-children ; 208 great grand-children ; and 4 great-great grand- 
children — in all, 313. His grand-children saw tlieir grand-children, 
and their grand-father at the same time." 



Manj, b. Oct. 6, 1G94 : m. Nov. 8, 1717, John Wheeler. 

Sarah, b. Feb. 10, 1G9G ; d. 1098. 

Judith, b. 1G98; m. July G, 1721, Eleazer Taylor. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 4, 1G99; m. Nov. 28, 1717, William Taylor. 

Thomas, b. April 18, 1702; he settled in Shrewsbury, where he m. 
Aug. 12, 1724, Damaris Hutcliins, of Ma^., and had a numerous 
family, who settled in Shrewsbury, Petersham, and other towns in 
Worcester County — some of whom became quite distinguished. 

Hepzibeth, b. June 27, 1704. 

fJohn, b. June 9, 1707; m. Feb. 17, 1731, Abigail Morse. 

Hulduh, b. Feb. 10, 1709. 

\ Joseph, b. Oct. 2, 1714; ni. Mary Brooks, of Concord. 



376 



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11-14 
15 
IG 
17 

18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 

4-13- 



13-25 

2G 
27 
28 
29 
30 

11-22- 



22-31 
32 

33 
34 

35 
3G 
37 

38 

11-24- 



24-39 

40 
41 



42 
43 
44 
45 
46 
47 
48 



John Hapgood m. Feb. 17, 1731, Abigail Morse, dan. of Jonathan 
and Mary (Stow) Morse. He was one of the Alarm List attached to 
Capt. Wecks's Company in 1757, when threatened by the French and 
Indians. He d. May 2G, 17G2, aged 55. She d. March 31, 1798. 

Jonathan, b. Feb. 12, 1732 ; d. Dec. 4, 173G. 

David, b. July 4, 1734 ; d. Jan. 5, 1737. 

Migail, b. Jan. IG, 1737 ; d. Aug. 9, 1739. 

Mary, b. June 4, 1740; m. Nov. 24, 1757, Charles Brooks. 

JitdUh, b. Nov. 8, 1742 ; m. May 2, 17G4, Solomon Barnes. 

Hezadiah, b. July 7, 1745; m. May 20, 17GG, John Nurse. 

Persis, b. July 19, 1748; d. Nov. 10, 1748. 

Hepzibeth, b. June 5, 1749; ni. May .30, 17G9, Jonas Howe. 

jJohn, b. Oct. 8, 17.52 ; m. Jan. 5, 1775, Lois Stevens. 

Migail, b. Aug. 13, 1755 ; m. Sept. 15, 1772, Thomas Rice. 

^Jonathan, b. May 16, 1759 ; m. May 6, 1783, Jerusha Gibbs. 



Joseph Hafgood m. April 26, 1739, Mary Brookg, of Concord. 
She d. Sept. 1807, at the advanced age of 92. He d. June 5, 1767. 

Migail, b. Oct. 12, 1741 ; d. Dec. 9, 1746. 

Thomas, b. Aug. 29, 1743 ; d. Dec. 16, 1745. 

Jonathan, b. Nov. 3, 1745 ; d. Dec. 7, 1746. 

\Thomas, b. Nov. 13, 1747; m. Dec. 16, 1773, Lucy Woods. 

\joseph, b. Jan. 23, 1754 ; m. Ruth Jackson. 

Mary, b. Aug. 6, 1756; m. June 21, 1773, Francis Howe. 



John Hapgood m. June 5, 1775, Lois Stevens, who d. April 10, 
1776, aged 21, leaving an infant 2 months old. He m. 2d, Feb. 2, 
1783, Lucy Munroe, of Lincoln. He d. Feb. 10, 1835, aged 82. She 
d. July 25, 1835, aged 78. 

John, b. Feb. 9, 1776 ; m. 1799, Betsey Temple, moved to N. H. 
Benjamin, b. March 9, 1783 ; m. Anna Whitman, of Stow. He was a 

captain in the militia. 

Lois, b. Oct. 20, 1785 ; m. Turner. 

Henry, b. Nov. 24, 1787; m. 1809, Catharine Conant, resided in 

Hingham. 

Hannah, b. Dec. 27, 1789; m. Kentfield. 

Manj, b. March 5, 1792; d. unm. 
Elizabeth, b. June 23, 1794 ; unm. 
Sarah, b. Sept. 26, 1796 ; unm. 



Jonathan Hapgood m. May 6, 1783, Jerusha Gibbs. She d. 
March 2, 1842, aged 80. He d. April 12, 1849, aged 90. He was a 
deacon of the 1st church. 

David, b. June 1, 1783 ; m. 1st, Abigail . She d. Feb. 22, 1806, 

and he m. 2d, Lydia Stearns, Dec. 1806. He d. 1830. 

Persis, b. May 1, 1785 ; m. July 21, 1803, Benjamin Rice. 

Mdhaniel, b. Sept. 14, 1787 ; m. May 22, 1808, Elizabeth Barber. He 
was killed instantly, Nov. 25, 1816, by the accidental discharge of a 
gun in the hand of a friend. 

Migail, b. Feb. 4, 1790. 

Fra7icis, b. Aug. 2, 1792; m. Dorcas Willis, of Sudbury. 

Jerusha, b. Dec. 13, 1794 ; m. . 

Hepzibeth, b. June 20, 1798 ; m. 1818, Moses Barnes. 

Moses, b. April 11, 1801 ; d. April 15, 1805. 

Jinn, b. March 1, 1803; m. , and moved to Cape Cod. 

Hannah, b. Aug. 10, 1805; d. 1807. 



377 



Thomas Hapgood m. Dec. 10, 1773, Lucy Woods, dan. of James 
and Hepzibeth Woods. He rose to the rank of Col. in the militia. 
She d. 1825, aged 78. He d. Sept. 14, 1822, aged 75. 

Jlaron, b. Sept. 18, 1774 ; ni. Sarah Carr, of Sudbury. 

Thomas, b. Aug. 24, 177() ; m. June 27, 1803, Mary Witt. 

Jlhii^ail, h. April 10, 1779; m. June 23, 1798, Thomas Whitney. 

M'illiam, b. Nov. 20, 1780 ; d. unm. 

James, b. Jan. 15, 1784; d. June 10, 1784. 

Asa, b. April 13, 1785; m. 1812, Phebe Rice, dau. of Jonah. She d. 

182G, aged 37. 
Jaines fF., b. April 21, 1787; m. Oct. 26, 1814, Abigail Howe. 



Joseph Hapgood m. 1777, Ruth Jackson. 

Josiah, b. ; m. 1800, Elizabeth Maynard. 

Joseph, b. March 7, 1779; d. young. 

Man/, b. Nov. 20, 1780; m. 1803, Ethan Darling. 

Sarah, b. March 25, 1783; m. March 23, 180(5, William Wesson. 

Joseph, b. Nov. 7, 1784 ; m. Mrs. Sukcy Maynard. 

Jonatlian, b. Dec. 20, 1780; m. Elizabeth Priest, 181.3. 

Ruth, b. Nov. 2, 1788 : m. May 7, 1807, John Osborn. 

Isaac, b. March 8, 1791 ; m. Sept. 2, 1817, Abigail Green. 

Liici/, b. May 12, 1793 ; m. 1809, Asa Bigelow. 

Lydia, b. July 9, 1795 ; m. Ezekiel Davis. 

Catij, b. Nov. 15, 1797; m. Abraham Ray. 

Joei, b. Sept. 20, 1801 ; d. unm. 

Judith, b. Oct. 14, 1803; d. unm. aged 18. 



V^ 



THE HARRINGTON FAMILY. 



Daw i uii Harrington wag a proprietor of Watcrtown in 1043, and 
was made a freeman in 1003. He m. Susanna George, and d. May 
17, 1707. He had 13 children. His 4th son was 

Daniel Harrington, b. Nov. 1, 1057 ; m. Sarah Whitney, who d. 
June 8, 1720, and ho m. Oct. 20, 1720, Elizabeth, wid. of Capt. Ben- 
jamin Garfield, and dau. of Matthew and Anna Bridge. He had five 
sons, all by his first wife. His oldest son was 

Daniel Harrington, b. Feb. 24, 1084 ; m. Oct. 18, 1705, Eliza- 
beth Warren. Thus far the family was confined to Watcrtown. But 
at the time or soon after his marriage, Daniel moved to Marl., where 
he d. Feb. 3, 1724. 

\Daniel, b. Oct. 5, 1707 ; m. Mary . 

Isaac, b. May 0, 1709 ; m. Feb. 20, 1730, Miriam Eager, dau. of Ze- 

rubbabel and Hannah (Kerly) Eager. He settled in Grafton, and 

his sons moved to Shrewsbury. 
James, b. June 20, 1711. 
Samuel, h. April 24, 1713; he was probably the Samuel Harrington 

who m. May 28, 1737, Lydia Ball, and resided in Waltham. 



Daniel Harrington m. Mary . She died June 9, 1793, in her 

89th year. He d Aug. 31, 1795, aged 88. He was one of the six 
months' men in the Revolution. 

Daniel, b. June 10, 1734 ; d. 1758, at Fort Edward. 
Mary, b. Aug. 7, 1735. 



378 



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11 

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8 



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Elizahelh, b. March 20, 1737 ; m. July 29, 17G0, Winslovv Brigham. 

Sarah, b. May IG, 1739; m. Oct. 21, 17G2, Abner Howe. 

Mirgard, b. May IH, 1741. 

]Jokn, b. Nov. 2.5, 1743 ; m. Lydia Mixor. 

Samuel, b. Dec. 1, 1745; d. April 12, 1800. ? 

Jonah, b. June 17, 1748. 



John Harrington iti. April 7, 17G8, Lydia Mixer. He d. March 
13, 1824, aged 79. She d. May 22, 1820. 

Daniel, b. Nov. 21, 17G8. 

Lnjdia, b. Sept. 7, 1770. 18 Luqi, b. Dec. 28, 1772. 

Levina, b. Jan. 14, 1775; m. Jan. 18, 1801, Edmund Fay. 

Elizabeth, b. June 3, 1777. 

Phebe, b. Aug. 18, 1779 ; m. Jan. 12, 1803, .Tosiah Howe. 

John, b. Sept. 2G, 1782. 

jyUliam., b. June 20, 1784 ; m. Hannah . 



David Harrington, brother of Daniel, (No. 3, in this table,) by 
wife Mary, who d. April 18, 1747, had 7 children, whose births are 
recorded in Marl. He d. Feb. IG, 175(j. 

David, b. July 26, 1719 ; d. 1795. 3 Mary, b. July 12, 1721. 

Caleb, b. April 3. 1723; in. Nov. 14, 1751, Hepzibah Haydcn, of Sud. 

Jacob, h. Feb. 10, 1725. 

Sarah, b. April G, 1727; m. April 23, 17.52, John Mills. 

Jason, h. May 13, 1729; probably settled in Rutland. 

JValhan, b. Aug. 8, 1731 ; d. Jan. 22, 1750. 



thp: iiartiiorn family. 

There were several persons by the name of Harthorn in Marl., 
whose genealogy I cannot accurately trace. They probably came 
from Lynn. JS'athaniel Harthorn, of Lynn, had a son Ebenezer, who 
m. 1G83, Esther Witt, probably a dau. of Jonathan and Mary Witt, b. 
1GG.5. Nathaniel Harthorn also had a son, jVathaniel, b. in Lynn. 
From the family names of JVathaniel and Ebenezer, and from the fact 
that Ebenezer Harthorn m. a dau. of Jonathan Witt, and that the 
names of Harthorn and Witt appear in Marl, about the same time, 
and that Nathaniel and Martha Harthorn. and Martha Witt, dau. of 
Thomas Witt, were offered in baptism, on the same day, Aug. 11, 
1723, Ave have no great doubt but that the Harthorns were from Lynn, 
as well as the Witts. Yet their record in Marl, is so imperfect that 
they cannot be traced with certainty. This name is spelt Harthron, 
as frequently as Harthorn— a tranposition of the o and r ; and some- 
times with an a, dropping the r — Harthan. 

Nathaniel Harthorn m. Martha , and had two or three 

children. She d., and he m. 1728, Sarah Stevens, probably of Stow. 
He resided on the place now occupied by the town as tlie Pauper 
Establishment. A part of the Harthorn house is now standing. 

JVathaniel, bap. Aug. 11, 1723; d. young. 

J^Iartlia, bap. Aug. 11, 1723. 4 JVathnniel, b. Dec. 23, 172G. 

^Ebenezer, b. June 30, 1734 ; m. May G, 1757, Rhoda Howe. 
J^Ianj, b. , 173G ; m. Nov. 5, 1754, Amasa Cranston. 



379 



Deliverance, b. ; m. March 1, 1764, John Cutler, of Shrewsbury, 

where they resided. When she was an infant of but a few days' 
old, licr father's house was burned down, and her motlier with three 
young children were rescued from the tlaines, and the infant and 
her mother were laid upon a bed in the open field. From this prov- 
idential rescue, the infant was named Deliverance. 



Ebejvezer Harthorn m. May 6, 1757, Rhoda Howe, dau. of Peter 
and Grace Howe. He was in the French war. He probably went to 
Henniker, N. H., where he and his wife d. 



John, b. Aug. 29, 1758. 
jYatlianiel, b. June 10, 17G2. 
Abner, b. March 28, 1707 



9 Sarah, b. June 4, 17(50. 
11 Mart/, b. Nov. 10, 17G4. 



Ebenezer HartuoRiN m. 1730, Elizabeth Goodalc, dau, of Ben- 
jamin Goodale. He was probably brother to Nathaniel, (No. 1 in the 
above table.) 

Lucy, b. Feb. 28, 1730. 

Silas, b. Dec. 22, 1732 ; he was in the French war, 1759. 

Micah, b. March 31, 1735; he was in the French war in 1757. He 

afterwards resided in Shrewsbury. 
Solomon, b. Feb. 24, 1738; ni. 17(Jl, Mary Gates, and had Ebcr,b. 

April 8, 17(j3; Eunice, h. April 1, 17G5. 



HAYDEN. — There were several families of Haydens in Marl. 
They may have come from Sudbury. 



Damel Hatden, by wife Sarah, had Marlhn, b. 17(!(J ; Persis, b. 
17G8; Josiah, b. Dec. 4. 1770; m. I'ariziah Newton; Daniel, b. Fob. 
24, 1773, m. 1801, Rebecca Winch; Dorothy, b. Feb. 4, 1775; Sally, 
b. 1777 ; Abigail and Levina, twins, b. 1779. Levina m. 1802, Tim- 
othy Sawin. 



Nahum Hayden, by wife Lois, had Jesse, b. April 30, 1775 ; Arle- 
mas, b. Aug. 20, 1781 ; IHllium, b. Aug. 10, 178(5; Lois, b. July 12, 
1788. Naimm came from Framingham. He d. Dec. 4, \S'Z'6. 

There is no connected record of the Haydens, though tiie name 
appears frequently upon the Books. 

Deacon Isaac Hayden, a prominent citizen in town at the present 
day, is of a different family, and came to Marl, since 1800. 



HEMENWAY. — Joshua Hemenway, by wife Margaret, had 
Benoni, b. April 22, 1()94. 



Daniel Hemenway, by wife Ruth, had Silas, b. April G, 1744. 



HINDS.— Jacob Hinds m. Dec. 0, 1716, Grace Morse, and had 
Tabiiha,h. 1718; Sarah, b. 1719; Abigail, b. 1720; Daniel, h. Swnc 
21, 1722 ; Jostpk, b. Jan. 20, 1724. He moved to Shrewsbury, where 
he had other children. 



IIOLDEN. — Abkl Holuen, from Sudbury, by Avife Thankful, had 
Thankful, b. 1783 ; ffilliam, b. 1785 ; Asa, b. 1787 ; and Jonas, b. 
1789. Abel Holden was capt. and selectman in Marl. 



380 



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4 
5 
7 
9 

10 

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1-4- 



HOLLAND. — John Holland, son of Samuel and Mary, of Marl., 
m. Elizabeth, and had Samuel, b. July 9, 1721. 

JojXAS Holland, by wife Bathsheba, had Ivory, h. Dec. 27, 1739. 



THE HOLYOKE FAMILY. 

Edward Holyoke was in Lynn, 1630; about 1G49, he moved to 
Springfield, in which place and vicinity, the name has been somewhat 
common. Several of the name have been prominent. From this stock 
the Marl, family undoubtedly descended. The name Elizur has been 
common in the family. 

Elizur Holyoke, of Marl., m. Feb. 15, 1775, Sarah Gates, dau. 
of Silas and Elizabeth Gates, b. Aug. 9, 1754. She d. April 14, 1830. 
He marched with Capt. Daniel Barnes to Cambridge, on the 19th of 
April, 1775, and afterwards entered the regular service. 

Lydia, b. Feb. 22, 1775. 3 Richard, b. Jan. 8, 1777. 

\William, b. Feb. 23, 1779 ; m. April 8, 1805, Rebecca Howe. 
Mary, b. March 13, 1781. G Elizabeth, b. Feb. 18, 1783. 

Sarah S., b. Feb. 13, 1785. 8 Susanjia, b. March 7, 1787. 

Martin, b. Aug. 10, 1789. 
Jacob, b. Dec. 4, 1791 ; m. 1823, Lydia Howe. He had 7 children, 

and. d. Nov. 7, 1853. 
Elizur, b. Jan. 2G, 1794 ; m. April 1, 1824, Martha Howe. 



William Holyoke m. April 8, 1805, Rebecca Howe, of Sud. 
She d. 1840. He was a Capt. in the Militia. 

They had JVilliam F., b. Oct. 10, 1805, m. 1829, Mrs. Lydia Fel- 
ton ; Edward, b. Oct. 22, 1808; John, b. Oct. 13, 1810; Freeman, b. 
Aug. 18, 1818 ; Sarah E., b. 1822, d. 1824 ; Sarah A., b. 1824 ; Susan 
E., b. 1827. 



HORN. — Robert and Elizabeth (Maynard) Horn had Robert, 
b. Aug. G, 172G. Robert, Jr. went to the South, where he m. and 
had a family. 



HOSMER. — James Hosmer, by wife Elizabeth, had Elizabeth, b. 
I(i89; James, h. Feb. 2G, 1G91 ; Urian, b. Aug., 1(!93; Zeruiah, b. 
Oct., 1G95; Jesseniah, b. March, 1()98 ; Hannah, b. March, 1700; 
Manasseh, h. Aug., 1702; Ephraim, b. Aug., 1704; Martha, b. 170G. 



THE HOWE FAMILY. 

The Hoives were among the very first settlers of Marl., and have been, 
in every period of her history, one of the most numerous families — 
furnishing vast numbers of emigrants for other and more western 
towns. 

John Howe, of Sud., was one of the petitioners in 1G57, for the 
grant which constituted Marl. He was the son of John Howe, sup- 
posed to be the John Howe, Esq., who came from Warwickshire in Eng., 
and who was a descendant of John Howe, himself the son of John of 
Ilodinhull, and connected with the family of Sir Charles Howe of 
Lancaster, in the reign of Charles I. 



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John Hoioe resided first perhaps at Wat., and afterwards at Sud., 
where he was in 1(J.3!). He was admitted freeman in 1640. He d. at 
Marl. 1687, and his wife Mary d, about the same time. lu 1642 he 
was selectman in Sud., and in 1655 was appointed by the pastor and 
selectmen " to see to the restraining of youth on the Lord's day." 
According to tradition, he was the first white inhabitant who settled 
on the new grant. He came to Marl, about 1657, and built him a 
cabin a little to the east of the Indian Planting Field, where his 
descendants lived for many generations. His place was situated some 
100 rods from Spring Hill Meeting House, a little to the east of the 
present road from Spring Hill to Feltonville— recently occupied by 
the late Edward Rice. His proximity to the Indian Plantation 
brought him in direct contact with the natives ; but by his kindness, 
he gained the confidence and good will of his savage neighbors, who 
accordingly, not only respected his rights, but in many cases made 
him the umpire in cases of difficulties among themselves. , In a case 
where a pumpkin vine sprang up within the premises of one Indian, 
and the fruit ripened upon the premises of another, the dispute which 
arose between them as to the ownership of the pumpkin, was referred 
to him ; and inspired with the wisdom of a second Solomon, he called 
for a knife, and severed the fruit, giving a moiety to each. This 
struck the parties as the perfection of justice, and fixed the impar- 
tiality of the judge on an immutable basis. 

Nor was a sense of his justice and impartiality confided in by the 
Indians alone. When in 16()2, Thomas Danforth, Esq., made a de- 
mand upon the Colony for a further compensation for his services, the 
Court ordered that he "shall have granted him so nuich land as old 
Goodman Rice and Goodman Howe, of Marlborough, shall judge to bo 
worth ten pounds ; and they arc im])owered to bound the same to him." 

John Howe opened the first public house in the place. About 1670, 
we find his petition for a renewal of his license, and he speaks as 
tliough he had been some time engaged in tlie business. 

The descendants of John Howe were very numerous ; though a 
portion of the Howes of Marl, were of another family. John Howe's 
will, proved 168!), mentions wife Mary, sons Samuel, Isaac, Josiah, 
Thomas, and Eleazer, and dau. Sarah Ward, Mary Wetherby, and 
John Howe, Jr., a son of son John, deceased. His property was in- 
ventoried at £511. lie gave Thomas " the horse he troops on." 



1-2- 



\John, b. 1640 ; m. Jan. 22, IG62, Elizabeth . He was killed by 

the Indians. 

Samuel, b. Oct. 20, 1642 ; m. June 5, 1663, Martha Bent, in Sud., 
where he resided and had a numerous family, some of whom were 
afterwards in Marl. 

Sarah, b. Sept. 25, 1644 ; m. June, 1667, Samuel Ward. 

Mary, b. June 18, 1646 ; d. young. 

jlsaac, b. Aug. 8, 1648 ; m. June 17, 1671, Frances Woods. 

\josiah, b. ; m. March 18, l(i71, Mary Haynes, of Sud. 

Mary, b. June 18, 1()54 ; m. Sept. 18, 1672, John Wetherby. 

\Thomas, b. June 12, 1656 ; m. 1st, Sarah Hosmer, and 2d, Mrs. Mary 
Baron. 

Daniel, b. Juno 3, 1658 ; d. 1661. 

Jlltxander, bw Dec. 29, 1661 ; d. the January following. 

|E/e«:er, b. Jan. 18, 1662; m. 1683, Hannah Howe, dau. of Abra- 
ham. 

John Howe m. Jan 22, 1662, Elizabeth . He resided in Marl,, 

Avhere the births of three of his children are recorded. * Hd probably 
49 



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had other children born earlier. He was killed by the Indians in 
Sudbury, April 20, 1676. The Probate Records say his "housings 
destroyed by the Indians." 

\John, b. Sept. 9, 1671 ; m. Rebecca . 

David, b. April 9, 1674 ; d. the same year. 

Elizabeth, h. 3 n\y 16, 1675; m. June 23,1699, Thomas Keyes. In 
1692 she was in Lancaster at the house of Peter Joslin, who mar- 
ried her sister, when the Indians attacked the house, murdered the 
family, and carried her into captivity, where she remained three or 
four years, when she was ransomed by the Government, and restored 
to her friends. When she was captured, she was about to be mar- 
ried; her intended, considering her lost to him forever, resolved 
never to marry ; but on her return repented of his folly. They 
moved to Shrewsbury, where he d. 1742. She d. Aug. 18, 1764, 
aged 89. It is said that she never fully recovered from the fright 
of her capture. 



Isaac Howe m. Jan 17,1671, Frances Woods. She d. May 14, 
1718, and he m. Dec. 2, 1718, Susanna Sibley, of Sutton. He d. 
Dec. 9, 1724, aged 77. By his will, dated June 20, 1723, he gave his 
homestead to his son John. 

Elizabeth, b. Jan. 17, 1673. 17 Sarah b. Jan. 28, 1675. 

Mari/, b. Feb. 13, 1677 ; m. 1706, Jonathan Wilder. 

John, b. Oct. 1680 ; d. in early infancy. 

^John, b. Sept. 16, 1682 ; m. Nov. 3, 1703, Deliverance Rice, of Sud. 

Bethiah, b. Aug. 24, 1684 ; m. 1714, Benjamin Garfield. 

Hannah, b. June 17, 1688 ; m. John Amsden. 

Thankful, b. June 22, 1691 ; m. 1711, James Cady. 



JosiAH Howe m. March 18, 1672, Mary Haynes, of Sud. His 
estate was settled, 1711, His widow m. John Prcscott. He was in 
Marl. 1675, and rallied with others to defend the inhabitants at the 
opening of Philip's war. 

Manj, b. 1672; d. young. 25 Mary, b. May 4, 1674 ; d. young. 

^Josiah, b. 1678 ; m. June 14, 1706, Sarah Bigelow. 
Daniel, b. May 5, 1681 ; settled in Shrewsbury. 
Ruth, b. Jan. 6, 1684 ; m. Bowker. 



Thomas Howe m. June 8, 1681, Sarah Ilosmer, who d. April 7, 
1724, and he m. Dec. 24, 1724, Mrs. Mary Baron. He d. Feb. 16, 
1733, aged 77. He was a prominent citizen in town, filled the prin- 
cipal town offices, represented the town in the General Court, rose to 
the rank of Col. in the militia, and was one of his Majesty's Justices 
of the Peace. He took an active part in the early Indian wars, and 
was in a severe action at Lancaster. 

Thomas Howe kept a public house in Marl., 1696 ; and as his Bond 
shows the spirit of the times, we will give the material portions of it, 
hoping it may afford some profitable hints to those who keep public 
houses at the present day. The bond provides that " he shall not 
suffer or have any playing at cards, dice, tally, bowls, nine pins, bil- 
liards, or any other unlawful game or games in his said house, or 
yard, or gardens, or backside, nor shall suffer to remain in his house 
any person or persons, not being his own family, on Saturday night 
after dark, or on the Sabbath days, or during the time of God's Public 
Worship ; nor shall he entertain as lodgers in his house any strangers. 



383 



men or women, above the sptico of forty-eio;ht hours, but such whose 
names and surnames, he shall deliver to some one of the selectmen or 
constable of the town, unless they shall be such as he very well 
knoweth, and will ensure for his or their forth coming — nor shall sell 
any wine to the Indians, or negroes, nor suffer any children or servant, 
or other person to remain in his house, tippling or drinking after nine 
o'clock in the night — nor shall buy or take to preserve any stolen 
goods, nor willingly or knowingly harbor in his house, barn, stable, or 
otherwhere, any rogues, vagabonds, thieves, sturdy beggars, master- 
less men or women, or other notorious offenders whatsoever — nor shall 
any person or persons whatsoever, sell or utter any wine, beer, ale, 
cider, rum, brandy or other liquors by defaulting, or by color of his 
license — nor shall entertain any person or persons to whom he shall 
be prohibited by law, or by any one of the magistrates of the County, 
as persons of jolly conversation or given to tippling." 

'abitJia, b. May 29, 1084; m. April 2, 1713, James Eager. 
\ James, b. June 22, IGSo; m. about 1710, Margaret Gates. 

\ Jonathan, b. April 23, 1(587 ; m. April 5, 1711, Lydia Brigham. -^ 

Prudence, b. Aug. 27, l()8i) ; m. Jan. 5, 1715, Abraham Williams. 

\Thomas, b. June 10, 1092; m. Rebecca . 

Sarah, b. Aug. 10, 1097. 



Eleazer Howe m. Hannah Howe, dau. of Abraham and Hannah 
(Ward) Howe. He was a man of property, and the silver mentioned 
in his will, shows that he abounded somewhat in an article, not com- 
mon in his day. She d. June 24, 1735, aged 72; and lie d. March 17, 
1737, aged 75. He was honored with the command of a Company, 
when such a trust was committed to the most able and reliable men. 
He gave by will a silver spoon to son Gcrshom, and a silver tankard 
to son Ephraim. Also a silver spoon each to dau. Martha Bartlett and 
Hannah Beaman. He also mentions dau. Elizabeth Witherbee. 

Martha, b. Sept. 4, 1080 ; m. Dec. 6, 1710, Daniel Bartlett. 
Deborah, b. July 0, 1088 ; m. June 30, 1710, Benjamin Bailey. 

jGershom, b. Sept. 8, 1094 ; m. Dec. 0, 1721, Hannah Bowker. 
\Ephraim, b. March .30, 1099 ; m. Jan. 8, 1723, Elizabeth Rice. 
\Eleazer, b. Dec. 15, 1707 ; m. 1732, Hepzibah Barrett. 
Hannah, b. ; m. May 2, 1720, Eleazer Beaman. 



John Howe m. Rebecca . She d. Sept. 22, 1731, and he m. 

June 18, 1740, Ruth Eager. His will in 1752 mentions all his chil- 
dren. Inventory, 1754, £535. 



'-.Peter, b. May 8, 1095 ; m. Dec. 4, 1718, Grace Bush. 

\John, b. July 10, 1097; m. 1724, Thankful Bigelow. 

Sarah, b. July 12, 1099 ; m. Pelatiah Rice (Father's Will, 1752. 

Ebenezer, b. May 1, 1701 ; d. in the army. 

Rebecca, b. March 19, 1703; m. 1728, John Bigelow. 

Mary, b. July 24, 1705 ; d. 1724. 

Hannah, b. Nov. 20, 1700 ; m. Jacob Rice. 

\Seth, b. April 13, 1708 ; m. Mary Morse. 

Elizabeth, b. Sept. 13, 1710 ; m. July 31, 1732, Matthias Howe. 

Eunice, b. July 22, 1712 ; m. John Sherman, of Grafton. 

Dorothy, b. Jan. 31, 1715; m. Feb. 4, 1735, Joseph Perry. 



384 



G-20- 



20-54 
55 



X 



56 
57 

59 

CO 
Gl 
62 
03 



7-26- 

26-64 

65 
67 
69 
70 

9-30- 

30-71 
72 
73 
75 

9-31- 




9-33- 



33-86 

87 



89 
90 
91 



John Howe m. Nov. 3, 1703, Deliverance Rice, of Siul., dau. of 
John and Tabitha (Stone) Rice. He d. May 19, 1754, aged 74. 

\Jesseniah, b. May 30, 1704 ; m. Damaris . 

\Matthias, h. Oct. 20, 1706 ; m. Feb. 4, 1732, Elizabeth Howe. 

Isaac, b. Feb. 8, 1708; m. April 21, 1735, Prudence Howe. 

^Benjamin, b. Dec. 14, 1710; m. Feb. 4, 1732, Lucy Amsden. 

Tabitha, b. July 27, 1712; m. June 11, 1739, Hezekiah Maynard. 

Patience, b. March 28, 1714. 

Paul, b. June 18, 1715 ; settled at Paxton. 

Mary, b. Nov. 22, 1719. 

Francis, b. June 16, 1721 ; settled at Rutland ; m. Lydia Davis. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 8, 1723. 



JosiAH Howe m. June 14, 1706, Sarah Bigelow. She d. and he 
m. Nov. 22, 1713, Mary Marble. He d. Sept. 20, 1766, aged 78. 

Phinehas, b. Dec. 4, 1707 ; m. Abigail Bennett ; resided at Shrews- 
bury. 
Abraham, b. April 6, 1709. 66 Rachel, b. Nov. 23, 1710. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 24, 1714. 68 Mnnj, b. May 22, 1716. 

\Josiah, b. Dec. 22, 1720; m. 1741, Mary Goodale. 
\Jacoh, b. Nov. 25, 1724 ; m. 1742, Ruth Swinerton, of Salem. 



James Howe m. about 1710, Margaret Gates. 

James, b. Jan. 4, 1712. 

Abisha, b. Aug. 8, 1713 ; d. March 10, 1714. 

Thankful, b. July 31, 1715. 74 Margaret, b. Oct. 13, 1717. 

Sybel, b. March 23, 1720. 76 Submit, b. July 23, 1722. 



Jonathan Howe m. April 11, 1711, Lydia Brigham, dau. of Samuel 
and Elizabeth (Howe) Brigham. He d. June 22, 1738, in his 52d 

year. 

Timothy, b. May 24, 1712 ; d. Oct. 15, 1740. 

Prudence, b. Nov. 3, 1714 ; m. Isaac Howe, of Leicester. 

\Bezaleel, b. June 19, 1717 ; m. Anna 13^ (r?U\/ 

\Charles, b. April 30, 1720 ; m. Lydia . 

\Eliakim, b. Jan. 17, 1723 ; m. Dec. 15, 1747, Rebecca Howe. 

Lucy, b. March 20, 1726. 

Lydia, b. April 12, 1729 ; d. young. 

Mary, b. Aug. 12, 1730 ; d. young. 

Lydia, b. June 29, 1732 ; m. Sept. 21, 1752, Timothy Goodenow. 



Thomas Howe m. Rebecca . He d. April 2, 1777, aged 85. 

She d. July 3, 1794. 

\Thomas, b. June 20, 1710 ; m. Dorothy . 

JVirtrj/, b. June 30, 1718. 

\Ezekiel, b. June 29, 1720 ; m. May 20, 1740, Elizabeth Rice. 

■\Simon, b. Oct. 28, 1722 ; m. 1745, Lydia Baker, of Littleton. 

Sarah, b. July 4, 1725 ; m. 1746, Benjamin Hoar. 

Rebecca, b. Aug. 16, 1727.. 



12-39- 



Gershom Howe m. Dec. 6, 1741, Hannah Bowker. He d. Oct. 
28, 1738. He was honored with the appellation of Ensign- His 



385 



39- 92 
93 
94 
95 
9G 
97 



12-40- 



40- 98 
99 

100 
101 



Inventory shows the spirit of the times — 2 Jirelocks, 2 swords, 2 belts, 
2 gindlcs, wooden pbitiers, plates, and trenchers, Wiiole amount of 
property, £3,887. 

Miriam, b. Nov. 27, 1722 ; m. May 17, 1744, Jotham Bartlett. 

jMoses, b. March 0, 1725; m. Hannah . 

Silas, b. Feb. .5, 1727 ; settled in Shrewsbury; m. Beulah Leiand. 
Zeridah, b. Oct. 9, 1729 ; m. Oct. 28, 1747, David Felton. 
Persis, b. March 2, 1730; m. Dec. 18, 1755, John Gleason. 
Hannah, b. Nov. 9, 1737. 



Ephraim Howe m. June 8, 1723, Elizabeth Rice, dau. of Benjamin 
and Mary (Graves) Rice. He d. Jan. 14, 17G4, aged ()8. 

\Stephfn, b. Dec. 1, 1723 ; m. Jan. 30, 1752, Elizabeth Beaman. 
Jlzadiah, b. March 26, 1725; m. 1749, Jacob Felton, and d. 1819, 

aged 94. 
Elizabeth, b. July 3, 1727 ; m. Jonathan Clifford ; r. in Worcester. 
Deborah, b. Feb. 2, 1729. 



102 Lijdia, b. June 7, 1731 ; m. Sept. 30, 1755, Noah Beaman. 

103 Hannah, b. May 5, 1734; m. Joseph Crosby; of Worcester. 

104 Manj, b. July 25, 1740. 



12-41- 



41-105 

lOG 
107 
108 
109 
110 
111 



13-43- 



43-112 
113 
114 
115 
116 
117 
118 
119 
120 



1.3-44- 



44-121 

122 
123 
124 



Eleazer Howe m. 1732, Hepzibah Barrett, dau. of Thomas and 
Elizabeth (Stow) Barrett. He d. Dec. 0, 1708. His will, dated Nov. 
25, 1708, speaks of wife Hepzibah, sons Ebenezer and Luther, and 
son-in-law Oliver Barnes, and dau. Catharine. She d. Feb. 22, 1794. 

Samuel, b. Dec. 1.5, 1732 ; he was in the French war in 1755-0, and 

had the command of a company. 
Sabilla, b. Sept. 1, 1734; m. July 10, 1760, Oliver Barnes. 
Katharine, b. April 5, 1737. 

Jonas, b. June 10, 1739 ; m. May 30, 1769, Hepzibah Hapgood. 
Levi, b. June 27, 1741. 

\ Ebenezer, b. March 20, 1744; m. July 20, 1707, Dolly Barnes. 
\Luther, b. April 10, 1747 ; m. Elizabeth . 



Peter Howe m. Dec. 24, 1718, Grace Bush. He d. Oct. 18, 1778, 
aged 84 ; and she d. aged 74 years, 7 montlis and 7 days. 

\Ezra, b. March 22, 1719; m. Phebe . 

\j\yiemiah, b. Jan. 13, 1721 ; m. 1747, Beulah Wheeler. — 
Keziah, b. March 9, 1723 ; m. June 2, 1750, Nathaniel Smit 



Smith. 



Ebenezer, b. April 4, 1725 ; d. July 20, 1725. 

Marij, b. April 2, 1726. 

Rebecca, b. July 12, 1728; m. Dec. 15, 1747, Eliakim Howe. 

\Peter, b. Dec. 23, 1730; m. March 26, 1754, Mary Smith. 

Rhoda, b. March 11, 1733; m. May 6, 1757, Ebenezer Harthorn. 

Ruth, b. May 13, 1736 ; m. Feb. 19, 1760, Josiah Stow. 



John Howe m. Feb. 11, 1724, Thankful Bigelow. He d. April 25, 
1734. His inventory was £769. She d. Oct. 18, 1765, aged GG. 

\C}iprian, b. March 29, 1726; m. 1, Dorothy Howe, and 2, Mary 

VVilliams. 
\Asa, b. Jan. 31, 1728 ; m. 1752, Mary Stow. 
Anna, b. Sept. 10, 1731. 
Patience, b. May 22, 1734; m. April 4, 1757, Edward Baker. 



386 



13-50- 

50-125 
126 
127 

20-54- 
54-128 

20-55- 

55-130 
131 
132 

20-57- 

57-134 
135 
130 
137 
138 
139 
140 
141 
142 
143 
144 

26-69- 

G9-145 
147 
148 
149 
150 
151 
152 
153 

26-70- 

70-155 
157 

31-79- 

79-159 
161 
163 

31-80- 
80-164 



Seth Howe m. Mary Morse. He d. April 27, 1789, 

Migail, b. May 29, 1741 ; d. Jan. 20, 1744. 

Rebecca, b. Dec. 20, 1743, d. unm. 

\John, b. June 5, 1747 ; m. Nov. 21, 1771, Susanna Fairbanks. 



Jesseniah Howe m. Damaris 
Jbe/, b. March 26, 1729. 



129 Hepzibah, b. April 6, 1730. 



Matthias Howe m. July 21, 1732, Elizabeth Howe. 

Elizabeth, b. March 22, 1733 ; m. May 4, 1757, Solomon Newton. 

Silas, b. May 10, 1735; d. July 2, 1738. 

Dorothy, b. July 28, 1737. 133 Maiy, b. March 9, 1740. 



Benjamin Howe m. Feb. 4, 1732, Lucy Arasden, dau. of Thomas 
and Eunice. He d. Oct. 20, J 757. She d. Oct. 7, 1773. 

Jacob, b. Feb. 26, 1732 ; d. March 6, 1732. 

fJVbaA, b. Feb. 6, 1733 ; m. Nov. 23, 1758, Martha Barnard. 

Mraham, b. March 3, 1735; d. March 10, 1735. 

Miriam, b. Jan. 17-36; d. same year. 

Lucy, b. Oct. 14, 1737; m. Oct. 24, 1765, William Maynard. 

\Joseph, b. Dec. 23, 1740; m. Feb. 25, 1762, Persis Rico. 

Xanne, b. July 15, 1743 ; d. 1745. 

Catharine, b. May 14, 1746. 

Lucretia, b. April 7, 1749, 

\Benjamin, b. Oct. 17, 1751 ; m. Abigail . 

Eunice, b. July 1, 1754. 



JosiAH Howe ra. Aug. 12, 1741, Mary Goodale, dau. of Benjamin 
and Hannah. 

Dorothy, b. March 1, 1743. 146 Daniel, b. March 4, 1745. 

Mary,b. April 15, 1746. 

\Josiah, b. June 30, 1748 ; m. Feb. 26, 1770, Molly Adams. 

David, b. Sept. 27, 1751 ; d. Oct. 15, 1751. 

Artemas, b. May 23, 1753. 

Hannah, b. Dec. 20, 1755. 

Loammi, b. May 3, 1758; d, Nov, 1, 1758, 

Elizabeth, b. May 6, 1759. 154 Charilota, b. Aug. 18, 1764. 



Jacob Howe m. Dec. 7, 1742, Ruth Swiniston, of Salem. 



Oliver, b. Feb. 18, 1749. 
Manj, b. July 9, 1756. 



156 Sarah, b. Dec, 12, 1753; d, young, 
158 Sarah, b. Dec. 13, 1757. 



Bezaleel Howe m. Anna^M^ She d. June 28, 1773. 



Susanna, b. Feb. 12, 1740. 
Eadith, b, Oct. 11, 1744, 
Bezaleel, b, Nov, 28, 1750. 



160 Timothy, b. Oct. 6, 1742. 
162 Darius', b. June 26, 1746. \( 



Charles Howe m. Lydia 
Theodore, b. March 27, 1747. 



165 Calvin, b. Feb. 22, 1749. 



387 



Eliakim Howe m. Dec. 15, 1747, Rebecca Howe. He moved to 
Ilenniker, N. H., before 1770. 

Otis, b. Oct. 3, 1748 ; m. Nov. 5, 1770, Lucy Goodale. 
Tilly, b. May 1, 1750. 1()8 Rhene, b. July 2, 1752. 

./Iniia, b. Aug. 20, 1754. 170 Moth/, b. Sept. 28, 1757. 

Prudence, b. Sept. 16, 1759 ; d. Jan. 3, 1702. 
JonatJmn, b. Oct. 29, 1761. 



Thomas Howe m. Dorothy 



She d. Sept. 4, 1796. 



Sifhcl, b. May 29, 1740 ; m. Peter Wood, Esq. 

Fiskc, b. June 23, 1741 ; m. March 31, 17(i7, Lydia Birrelow. 

\Jhilipas, b. April 16, 1745 ; m. Nov. 23, 1774, Catharine Tainter. 

jirtemas, b. March 11, 1747; moved to Templeton. 

\Francis, b. June 26, 1750 ; m. June 21, 1773, Mary Ilapgood. 



EzEKiEL IIowE m. May 10, 1740, Elizabeth Rice. 
Patience, b. June 10, 1742. 



Simon Howe m. 174.5, Lydia Baker, of Littleton. He d. Aug. 
26, 1806, aged 84, and she d. June 9, J80!>, aged 85. 

miliam, b. May 5, 1747; d. May 8, 1763. 

Catharine, b. Feb. 2(i, 1749 ; d. 1749. 

Alice, b. Sept. J>, 1750; m. June 27, 1776, Jabez Rice. 

Li/dia, b. Dec. 22, 1753. 

Jbcl, b. May 8, 1756 ; d. May 13, 1763. 

Talman, b. May 22, 1758 ; d. July 2, 1815 ; m . 

\Perkim, b. Dec. 21, 1760; m. 1795, Ruth Dunlap. 

Perlci/, b. Sept. 19, 17()2; grad. at Dart. 1790; studied divinity; set- 
tled at Surry, N. H. ; rn. Dec. 9, 1795, Zeruiah Barnes, dau. of 
Moses and Sarah Barnes. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 3, 1764 ; d. July 31, 1782. 

\Jiaron, b. Aug. 29, 1766; m.'July 21, 1793, Ruth Gleason. 



Moses Howe m. Hannah 
Nov. 22, 1789, aged 74. 



He d. July 8, 1771, and she d. 



Gcrshom, b. Sept. 26, 1747 ; d. young. 

\Samuel, b. Jan. 12, 1749; m. Oct. 24, 1771, Hannah Burnet. 

Jonathan, b. Aug. 15, 1751 ; moved to Ilolden. 

Sarah, h. Aug. 20, 1753 ; m. John Gassett. 

Gershom, b. Jan. 13, 1756 ; resided at Holden. 



Stephen Howe m. June 30, 1752, Elizabeth Beaman, dau. of 
Abraham and Mary Beaman. He d. May 29, 1768. 

Keziah, b. March 25, 1753; d. June 20, 1753. 
\Ephraim, b. June 6, 1754 ; m. Hannah Maynard. 
Stephen, b. Aug, 22, 1758; d. Sept. 19, 1761. 
\Eleazer, b. April 1, 17(JI ; m. Caty Barnard. 
FAizaheth, b. May 12, 17(M; m. William Gates, as his 2d wife. 
Stephen, b. July 24, 1767 ; m. March 2, 1790, Judith Hunt ; r. Lunen- 
burg, Vt. 

Ebenezer Howe m. July 20, 1767, Dorothy Barnes. She d. 
March 15, 1802. 



388 



110-200 

201 

.202 



41-111- 



111-203 
204 

205 
20G 
207 
208 
209 



43-112- 



] 12-210 
212 
214 
21() 

218 

43-113- 
113-219 

43-118- 

118-220 
221 
223 
225 

44-121- 



121-22G 

228 
229 
230 
231 
232 

44-122- 
122-234 



JVillard, b. Jane 25, 17G9 ; m. Au^. 16, 1797, Polly Brigham. 

^'^^^'' Ih Anril 9 1774 5 ^- ^P"^' l^"*^' """• 

Aaron, ^ "■ ^P"' ^' ''^^- ^ jj^^ j^^^ ^8, 1800, Abigail Morse, dau. of 
Francis. 



Luther Howe m. Elizabeth Watson. She d. May 12, 1796. He 
d. Sept. 24, 1811, aged 64. 

Elizabeth, b. May 27, 1777 ; m. Ephraim B. Rice ; moved to Vt. 

Sarah, IT. Jan. 31, 1779 ; m. 1st, Charles Dexter, and 2d, Gates, 

of Stow. 
Luther, b. Dec. 7, 1780 ; moved to Vt. 
Ifilliam, b. Jan. 25, 1783 ; moved to Vt. 
Ebenezer, b. Dec. 18, 1784; moved to Vt. 
Susanna, b. June 25, 1788 ; moved to Vt. 
Lemuel, b. Aug. 26, 1792 ; m. Sally Jones ; r. in Grafton. 



Ezra Howe m. Phebe . He was one who took part in the 

French war, and marched to the relief of Fort William-IIenry. He 
d. Sept. 9, 1795. The family removed from town before 1770. 



Snrah, b. Jan. 25, 1750. 
Phche, b. May 5, 1754. 
Micah, b. Sept. 22, 17.59. 
Judith, b. Oct. 8, 1765. 



Moses, b. Feb. 14, 1772; d. Sept. 9, 1775. 



211 JVchemiah, b. March 5, 1752. 
213 Eli, b. Feb. 25, 1757. 
215 Lydia,h.J)fic. 10, 1762. 
217 Aaron, b. Sept. 19, 1768. 



Nehemiah Howe m. 1747, Bculah Wheeler. They left town. 
Ahner, b. Nov. 17, 1747. 



Peter Howe m. March 26, 1747, Mary Smith. She d. June 4, 1806. 

\LoveH, b. May 17, 1756, m. Patty and Nabby Parker. 
Ebenezer, b. Jan 12, 1761. 222 John, b. June 4, 1763. 

Lucy, b. Dec. 17, 1765. 224 William, b. April 3, 1768. 

Levi, b. July 1 , 1777. 



Cyprian Howe m. Nov. 20, 1750, Dorothy Howe, dau. of Joseph 
and Ruth Howe. She d. May 30, 17(i4, and he m. Feb. 6, 1766, Mary 
Williams, dau. of Abraham and Elizabeth Williams. He kept a pub- 
lic house. He was a Capt. at the opening of the Revolution, and 
marched to Cambridge on the Lexington alarm on the 19th of April, 
1775 ; and served further in the war of the Revolution. He was Col. 
in the militia. 

Martha, b. Sept. 3, 1751. 227 Jabez, b. April 14, 1753. 

Catee, b. Dec. 28, 1757 ; m. Jan. 2. 1776, Joel Brigham. 

Phebe, b. Jan. 31, 1762. 

Dorolhrj, b. June 18, 1767; m. 1788, Joshua Burnham. 

Mnry, b. May 12, 1770 ; m. Benjamin Sawin. 

John, b. Sept. 20, 1773. 233 Hennj, b. Oct. 6, 1779. 



Asa Howe m. June 9, 1752, Mary Stow, dau. of John and Eliza- 
beth (Brigham) Stow. She d. Jan. 11, 1814. 

John, b. Aug. 11, 1752. 



389 



50-127- 



127-235 
23G 
237 

238 
239 
240 
241 
242 
243 
244 
245 

57-135- 

135-246 

247 
248 
249 
250 
251 

57-139- 

139-252 
57-143- 



143-253 
254 
255 

25G 
257 

258 
259 
2G0 
201 
202 
203 
264 

69-148- 



148-205 
2(50 

207 

268 



John Howe m. Nov. 21, 1771, Susanna Fairbanks. She d. Feb. 
12, ]791. He d. Oct. 3, 1818. 

Mary, b, Dec. 17, 1772 ; d. July 14, 1849, unm. 

j Jason, b. June 8, 1774 ; m. Mary Warland, of Cambridrre. 

Ahigail, b. Jan. 12, 1770; m. 1800, Joseph Gleason, moved to 

Acworth, N. H. 
L»n/, b. Dec. 8, 1777; d. 1791. 
Lijdia, b. Dec. 19, 3779; living in North Wrenthani. 
Elizabeth, b. Aug. 7, 1781 ; d. unm. 1847. 
Anna, h. Jan. 22, 1783; m. Amariah Daniels. 
Sarah, h. April 4, 1785; m. Jonathan Russell, of Sherborn. 
Phebe, b. Nov. 4, 1780; m. Salmon Mann, N. Wrentham. 
Pattij, b. Nov. 23, 1788; m. Thomas Page, Walpole. 
Susan Dorothy, b. Jan. 31, 1791 ; m. Martin Moore, Sudbury. 



Noah Howe m. Nov. 23, 1758, Martha Barnard, dau. of Robert 
and Rebecca Barnard. He d. Feb. 3, 1813, aged 80. She d. Aug. 
10, 1807. 

Fortunatiis, b. March 26, 1760 ; m. March 23, 1786, Sarah Bruce, and 

d. 1831. 
\ffinslow, b. Nov. 8, 1701 ; m. Dolly Hayden, of Sud. 
jVanne, b. April 2, 1703; d. Jan. 21, 1770. 

Calvin, b. Juno 17, 1705; m. Aug. 10, 1787, Esther Howe, dau of Asa. 
Gardner, b. Feb. 10, 1707 ; d. Aug. 25, 1775. 
Lydia,h. April 20, 1709. 



Joseph Howe m. Feb. 2.5, 1702, Persis Rice, dau. of Abraham and 
Persis (Robinson) Rice. She d. before 1785, aged 87. 

\Archelaus, b. May 12, 1763 ; m. Lucy Howe, dau. of Asa, 



Benjamin Howe m. Abigail Howe, dau. of Asa. 
1814. 



He d. July 18, 



Lucretia, b. Jan. 19, 1782; m. 1800, Francis Hudson. 

Catharine, b. Dec. 7, 1783 ; m. William Morse, of North. 

ff'indsor, b. Oct. 12, 1785; m. Oct. 12, 1808, Lydia Brigham, r. 

Lowell, d. 1857. 
JfiUiam, b. June 9, 1787; m. Feb. 6, 1810, Abigail Fay, d. 1857. 
Stephen, b. Sept. 13, 1789; m. Patty Stow, of Grafton. 
Migail, b. June 2, 1791 ; m. Jacob Goddard, of Berlin. 
Benjamin, b. March 5, 1793; d. unm. 1814. 

Winthrop, b. Aug. 12, 1795; m. •. 

Luc\i, b. July 6, 1798 ; m. John G. Brigham, r. in Concord. 
Jeroboam, b. April 1, 1800; resides in Lowell. " 

Lydia, b. June 12, 1802 ; m. . 

Alonzo, b. Feb. 23, 1804 ; d. at Lowell. 



JosiAH Howe m. Feb. 24, 1770, Molly Adams. He d. Jan. 15, 
1827, aged 78 yrs. 5 mos. 18 days. She d. June 1, 1845, aged 93 yrs. 
10 mos. 2 days. He was a deacon of the church. 

\John, b. Sept. 9, 1772 ; m. Lydia Williams. 
Lydia, b. March 12, 1775; d. Jan. 15, 1790. 
Solomon, h. March 28, 1777 ; m. May 19, 1802, Sarah Stow, lived and 

d. in Berlin. 
Eunice, b. July 28, 1780 ; m. Oct. 30, 1799, Joseph Howe. 
50 



390 



269 
270 

271 
86-175- 

175-272 

86-177- 

177-273 
274 

276 
278 
279 
280 
281 
282 

89-185- 



185-283 
284 

285 
286 



89-188- 

188-287 
288 
289 
291 
293 
295 

93-190- 



98-195- 



195-296 



297 



Josiah, b. March 27, 1783; m. Phebe Harrington, r. So. Orange. 
Letvis, b. May 2, 1792 ; m, March 28, 1816, Sally Witt; m. 2d, June 

28, 1853, Asenath S. Boyd. 
Lucy, b. Nov. 1, 1794 ; m, Benjamin Clark. 



Antipas Howe m. Nov. 23, 1774, Catharine Tainter. They moved 
to Princeton. 

Catharine, h. March 31, 1775. 



Francis Howe m. June 21, 1773, Mary Hapgood, dau. of Joseph 
and Mary. He d. Feb. -28, 1833, aged 82. 

Joseph, b. Nov. 7, 1773; d, Aug. 12, 1775. 

Francis, b. Jan. 7, 1776. 275 Leuns, b. Feb. 3, 1778. 

EzcMel, b. July 30, 1780. 277 Thomas, b. Dec. 2, 1783. 

Polly, b. June 19, 1786; m. Aaron Cutter, Oct. 25, 1811. 

L^icy, b. Oct. 21, 1788; m. James Hapgood. 

LTjdia, b. Feb. 23, 1791 ; m. 1823, Nathaniel A. Bruce. 

Lambert, b. Aug. 12, 1795 ; m. Charlotte Barnes, dau. of Stephen. 

Jlbigail B., b. Feb. 28, 1810. 



He probably m. a 2d 



Perkins Howe m. 1795, Ruth Dunlap. 
wife — Nancy Dunlap. 

Betsey, b. April 27, 1796; m. Abel Rice ; d. at Worcester. 
Sally, b. April 3, 1798. 

Elizabeth, b. July 22, 1800; m. Silas Dalrymple. 
Henry, b. Aug. 14, 1814. 

Perkins Howe had John, Abel, Samuel, and perhaps other children 
whose births are not recorded. 



Aaron Howe m. July 21, 1793, Ruth Gleason; moved to Stow, 
and afterwards went west and resided with some of his children. 

Loi^, b. Dec. 5, 1793 ; d. young. 

Mel, b. Aug. 23, 1795 ; d. May 9, 1796. 

CJutrles, b. Nov. 10. 1796. 290 Hollis, b. May 28, 1799. 

Lois, b. Nov. 10, 1800. 292 Sally, b. Aug. 1, 1803. 

Mmira, b. Sept. 21, 1804. 294 Rut'hy, b. April 16, 1806. 

miliam, b. April 25, 1808. 



Samuel Howe m. Oct. 24, 1771, Hannah Burnet. He d. July 31, 
1820, aged 71. She d. Nov. 5, 1835, aged 92. He resided in the 
west part of the town, and was a deacon of the church in the first 
parish. He d. without issue. 



Ephraim Howe m. Nov. 1782, Hannah Maynard, of Framingham. 
She d. June 24, 1795, and he m. 1796, Elizabeth Chamberlain. He d. 
Sept. 22, 1801. 

Moses, h. Oct. 6, 1783; m. March 16, 1807, Lucy Temple, dau. of 
John Temple. They had Eveline, b. Nov. 9, 1809, m, Winthrop 
Arnold; Ephraim, b. June 10, 1810, r. in New York city; Lucy, b. 
Dec. 21, 1811, d. 1831 ; Betsey, b. Sept. 17, 1813, d. young; Moses, 
b. Sept. 14, 1816 ; Eli H., b. JDec. 8, 1817. 

Betsey, b. May 17, 1785 ; d. 1816. 



391 



298 



299 
300 



98-197- 

197-301 
302 
303 
304 
305 
30(J 
307 
308 
309 
310 
311 
3J2 

1 18-220- 

220-313 
314 
315 
317 

318 



127-236- 



23G-320 
322 

135-247- 



247-324 



139-252- 



252-325 

32G 
327 

328 



Ephraim, h. July 31, 1788 ; m. Oct. 13, 1811, Anna Temple. He d. 
Jan. 27, 1842. He had Medham, b. 1812; Hannah, 1814; Betsey, 
1816; .^nn, 1818; Ephraim, 1820; Arelhusa, 1822; Sophia, 1824; 
Maria, 1826 ; Eveline, 1828 ; Lucy, 1831 ; Mel, 1833. Col. Ephraim 
Howe resided near the old Winchester place. The house in which 
he lived was burnt 18G0— being the 2d dwelling burnt on that site. 

Mel, b. Jan. 3, 1793 ; d. . 

Hannah, b. Jan. 13, 1798 ; went with her mother to Marl,, N. H. 



Eleazer Howe m. Caty Barnard. She d. June 21, 1845, aged 74. 
He d. Feb. 27, 1836, aged 74. 

Mary, b. Dec. 14, 1789 ; d. voung. 

Stephen, b. April 26, 1791 ; d. 1793. 

Sophia, b. Aug. 18, 1794; d. 1797. 

Stephen, b. Aug. 18, 1796; m. July 6, 1821, Mrs. Hannah Peters. 

Solonwn, b. July 27, 1798 ; resided in Boston ; m. Olive ; d. 1836. 

Martin, b. Dec. 5, 1800 ; ni. June 24, 1830, Caroline Arnold, who d. 1856. 

Catfiarine, b. Aug. 19, 1804 ; m. Ebenezer Gale. 

Mel, b. Jan. 14, 1807 ; went South. 

Lyman B., b. May 6, 1809. 

Orison, b. Sept. 26, 1811 ; d. Oct. 1811. 

Eleazer O., b. Dec. 17, 1812. 

Mary, b. June 6, 1815 ; m. Lewis Maynard. 



LovEWELL Howe m. Patty Parker. She d. and he m. 1803, 
Nabby Parker. 

Samuel, b. Jan. 19, 1785 ; ni. 1st, Balcom, and 2d, Betsey Bigelow. 

George, b. June 3, 1787; ni. Oct. 17, 1816, Mary Brigham. 
Luther, b. April 27, 1792. 316 Eliza, b. March 31, 1804. 

Peter P., b. Oct. 28, 1805 ; r. in South. He was the tirst person bap- 
tized in the West meeting-house. 
Caroline, b. April 18, 1807. 319 Migail, b. Feb. 12, 1810. 



Jason Howe m. Mary Warland, of Cambridge. She d. and he m. 
1818, Isabella Hastings. He d. Sept. 2, 1851, aged 77. 



John W., b. Oct. 30, 1806. 
Thomas J., b. Nov. 8, 1826. 



321 Mani /., b. Jan. 23, 1823. 
323 Susanna H, b. Feb. 7, 1834. 



WiNSLOw Howe m. Dolly Hayden, of Sudbury. He d. March 
18, 1832, aged 70. She d. Dec. 28, 1841. 

Lyman, b. June 6, 1797 ; m. Rebecca , and had a large family. 

Winslow Howe had other children, but their names and birtlis are 
not given upon the Records ; among them were Dolly, who m. 1820, 
William Onthank ; Laura Ann, who m. 1820, William Brown. 



Archelaus Howe m. July 20, 1784, Lucy Howe, dau. of Asa 
Howe. They moved about 1826 to Vernon, Vt. 

Phehe, b. Sept. 26, 1784 ; m. May 27, 1799, Joel B. Clisbee ; d. July, 

1799. 
Persis, b. March 29, 1787 ; m. March 16, 1807, Francis Gleason. 
Abraham, h. J \i\y 18, 1789; m. Sept. 1, 1811, Sally Brigham; r. at 

Lowell, where he d. 
Luther, b. Sept. 23, 1791 ; m. Feb. 7, 1816, Lucy Brigham, dau. of 

Ephraim, r. at Northfield. 



392 



329 

830 
331 
33-2 



148-2G5- 



2G5-333 
334 
335 



1- 2 
3 

- 4 
5 
6 
7 
8 
9 
10 
11 

1-2- 



2-12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 
18 

1-4- 



Tfiomas, b. Nov. IG, 1793; m. Feb. 5, 1819, Patty Bigelow, dau. of 

Gershom. 
ivCTO, b. June21, 179G. 

SojMa, b. March 15, 1799 ; m. Dec. 6, 1721, Ephraim Brigham. 
George, b. July 10, 1803. 



John Howe m. 1800, Lydia Williams. 

Samuel S., b. Oct. 5, 1809; d. 185-. 

John A., b. Feb. 29, 1812; m. Feb. 10, 1834, Abigail C. Newton. 

Liyrfi'a IV., b. June 20, 1813 ; m. Oct. G, 1835, William F. Barnard. 



THE ABRAHAM HOWE FAMILY. 

Having given a Genealogy of the family of John Howe, it becomes 
necessary to give a notice of the family of Abraham. John Howe, we 
have -seen, came from Sudbury, and was in Marl, as early as 1G57, or 
'58. In the year IGGO the name of Abraham Howe appears among 
the proprietors of the town. He probably came from Roxbury, had a 
numerous family, and his descendants have remained in the town to 
the present day. We have no evidence that he was connected with 
the family of John Howe. 

Abraham Howe m. May 6, 1657, Hannah Ward, dau. of William 
Ward. Their second and third child were born in Watertown, and 
perhaps their first. Their first recorded in Marl, was in 1663. He d. 
June 30, 1695, and his wid. d. Nov. 3, 1717, aged 78. He located 
himself near where school house No. 2, is now situated. 

\Daniel, b. 1658 ; m. Oct. 6, 1688, Elizabeth Kerley, of Marl. 

Mary, b. 1659 ; m. John Bowker, of Sud., r. in Marl. 

\ Joseph, b. 166 J-; m. 1686, Dorothy Martin. 7/ 

Hannah, b. Nov. 9, 1663 ; m. Eleazer Howe. 

Elizabeth, b. April 5, 1665; m. Capt. Nathan Brigham. 

Deborah, b. March 1, 1667 ; m. 1687, John Barrett. 

Rebecca, b. Feb. 4, 1668 ; m. Peter Rice, of Marl. 

jAbraliam, b. Oct. 8, 1670 ; m. 1695, Mary Howe. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 20, 1672 ; m. Joseph Stratton, 1695, r. in Marl. 

Abigail, b. March 4, 1675 ; d. unm. April 17, 1697. 



Daniel Howe, Capt., m. Elizabeth Kerley. He d. April 13, 1718. 
He was a large landholder in Marl., Lancaster and Westboro'. His 
property was inventoried at £1,264. His wid. administered upon his 
estate. She d. 1735. 

Martha, h. July 30, 1687; m. 1714, Col. Nahum Ward. 
\Hezekiah, b. June 19, 1691; m. 1715, Elizabeth Tainter. 
Dani€l,h. Nov. 29, 1692; d. Feb. 6, 1740. 
\Jonathan, b. April 23, 1695 ; m. Sarah Hapgood. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 13, 1697; m. Paul Howe, of Paxton. 
David, b. April 27, 1700 ; resided in Westboro'. 
Zeruiah, b. Dec. 13, 1702; m. Feb.- 20, 1722, Joseph Howe. 



Joseph Howe m. Dorothy Martin. He d. Sept. 4, 170(!), aged 40, 
and his wid. settled his estate. They were m. in Charlestown, Dec. 
29, 1687. He was a large landholder in Marl., Lancaster and Wat., 
and owned the grist mill at Feltonvillc before 1700, probably the first 
mill erected there. His real estate was inventoried at £1,442. 



393 



4-19 
20 
21 

.22 
23 
24 

]-9- 



2-13- 

13-25 
27 

2-15- 



15-20 
30 
32 
33 
34 
35 
3G 
38 

4-22- 



22-39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 
45 
4G 
47 
48 



4-23- 



23-49 
50 
51 
52 
- 53 
54 
55 
56 



^ r.?* W 



<■<. 



Sarah, b. July 27, ]G88; m. 1711, Jeremiah Barstow. 
Eunice, h. Jan. 15, 1G!*2; m. 1712, Thomas Amsdcii. 
Bdhia, b. March 7, 1095. 

Uoseph, b. Feb. 19, 1(J97 ; m. Zeruiah Howe, Feb. 20, 1722. 
\Mraham, b. March 21, ltJ98 ; m. Rachel Rice. 
Jedediah, b. April 3, 1701. 



Abraham Howe m. 1G95, Mary Howe. He was slain by the In- 
dians near Lancaster, July, 1704. He had only one child, viz. Abigail, 
b. May 22, 1702. 



Hezekiah Howe m. July 25, 1715, Elizabeth Tainter. 



Benjamin, b, April 18, 171G. 
Daniel, b. Oct. 14, 1724. 



2G Noah, b. Sept. 8, 1721. 
28 Abigail, b. March 2G, J 730. 



Jonathan Howe m. Sarah Hapgood. 
43, and his wife Sarah settled his estate. 



Had. July 25, 1738, aged 



^Solomon, h. Dec. 17, 1718; m. Mary Howe. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 2, 1720. 31 Sarah, b. Oct. 25, 1721. 

Abigail, b. Sept. 20, 1723 ; d. 1729. 

Damaris, b. July 31, 1725; in. 1743, Stephen Gates. 

Sijlvanus, b. April G, 1727. 

Mllicent, b. April 20, 1729; m. 174G, Alphcus Woods. 

Jcluibod, b. Jan. 9, 1731. 37 Abigail, b. Marcli 25, 1733. 

Isaac, b. Jan. 27, 1735. 



Joseph Howe m. I^cb. 20, 1722, Zerviah Howe, dau. of Capt. 
Daniel Howe. Siie d. Dec. 10, 1723, and lie m. July 12, 1727, Ruth 
Brigliam, dau. of Jonatlian and Mary Brigliam. His will, dated July 
ii), 1770, and proved March 14, 1775, mentions wife Ruth, sons 
Joseph, Thaddeus, Phinehas, and Artemas, and dau. Zorviah Smith, 
Dinah Willard, wife of Jusiali, Miriam liigelow, and Betty, then unm., 
and grand-children of dau. Dorolliy, late wife of Cyprian Howe. He 
was a large owner of land in New Marlboroogh. His widow d. Oct. 
14, 1781 in her 87th year. He d. Feb. 18, 1775. 

Zetniiah, b. Nov. 24, 1723 ; m. Abraham Smith. 

^Joseph, b. Feb. 1, 1728; m. May 21, 1751, Grace Rice. 

Dorothy^ b. May 4, 1730 ; m. Nov. 20, 1750, Cyprian Howe. 

Dinah, b. Oct. 11, 1731 ; m. Josiah Willard. 

jThaddeus, b. May 30, 1733; m. April 12, 1757, Levinah Brigham. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 12, 1734 ; m. Dr. Rice, of Barre. 

Samuel, b. May 22, 1737 ; d. May 29, 175(5, in the French war. 

\Phinehas, b. Jan. 25, 1739; ni. l)ec. 11, 17G4, Dorothy Burnet. 

\Artemas, b. Jan. 15, 1743; ni. March 28, 1767, Mary Bigelow. 

Miriam, b. Dec. 5, 1744; m. April 7, 17(53, Timothy Bigelow. 



Abraham Howe m. May 24, 1724, Rachel Rice, dau. of Benjamin 
and Mary (Graves) Rice. 

Eunice, b. May 1(5, 1725 ; m. 1749, David Warren. 
Marij, b. June 14, 1727; m. 1750, Frederick Barnes. 
Persis, b. Nov. 14, 1728 ; m. Dec. 18, 1755, John Gleason. 
\Ahrnham, b. Dec. 14, 1730 ; ni. Sept. 17, 1755, Lydia Howe. 
\Asa, b. Nov. 30, 1733 ; m. March lH, 17G2, Rachel Goddard. 
Abner, b. Nov. 1, 1735 ; m. Oct. 2, 17(52, Sarah ILirrington. 
Adonijah, b. Sept. 7, 1737 ; m. May 31, 1764, Lydia Ciiurch. 
Anna, b. Feb. 5, 1740 ; d. 1752. 



394 



15-29- 

29-57 
58 
GO 
61 



22-40- 



40-G2 

C3 

G4 
G5 

m 

G7 
68 
69 
70 
71 

72 

73 



22-43- 



43-74 
75 

76 

77 
78 
79 
80 
81 

22-46- 



46-82 

83 

84 
85 
86 
874 

88 



Solomon Howe m. Mary Howe. 



Jonaihan, b. April 7, 1739 ; d. Jan. 27, 1740. 
Danid, b. June 13, 1740. 59 Zadock, b. June 3, 1742. 

Luke, b. Feb. 21, 1745 ; m. Nov. 29, 1770, Catharine Howe. 
Edmund, b. June 3, 1749. 



Joseph Howe m. May 21, 1751, Grace Rice, dau. of Simon and 
Grace, b. 1730. He d. Sept. 26, 1800, aged 72. Siie d. Jan. 23, 
1816, aged 87. 

Lovina, b. July 19, 1751 ; m. Jan. 2, 1772, Peter Rice, and d. Dec. 23, 

1812. 
Reuben, b. Oct. 12, 1752; m. 1791, Susanna Gushing, and moved to 

Guildhall, Vt. 
Simon, b. Aug. 14, 1754 ; moved to Guildhall, Vt. 
Samuel, b. Oct. 2, 1756 ; moved to Guildhall, Vt. 
Lucy, b. Sept. 18, 1758; m. Thomas Tileston, Boston. 
Eli, b. July 20, 1760 ; m. Polly Oakes. He was in the Revolution. 
Hepzibah, b. Sept. 15, 1762 ; d. April 10, 1773. 

Daniel, b. Aug. 4, 1764 ; moved to Guildhall, Vt., and d. Aug. 9, 1818. 
Joseph, b. Sept. 20, 1768 ; d. July 26, 1773. 
Miriam, b. Oct. 16, 1770 ; m. 1794, John Coats, of Boston. She d. at 

Cambridge, 1861, in her 92d year. 
Hepzibah, b. April 5, 1773 ; m. Jan. 15, 1793, Jacob Barnes, and d. 

May 14, 1826. 
\Joseph, b. March 8, 1775 ; m. Oct. 30, 1799, Eunice Howe, and d. 

Sept. 5, 1851. 



Thaddeus Howe m. April 12, 1757, Lovina Brigham, dau. of 
Joseph and Comfort (Bigelow) Brigham. She d. Aug., 1784, and he 
m. June, 1786, Mrs. Prudence Holman, of Bolton, as her fourth hus- 
band. He d. March 18, 1799, aged 66, and she d. Sept. 5, 1831, 
aged 96. 

Susanna, b. June 22, 1758 ; m. Nov. 2, 1778, Gershom Rice. 
JVanne, b. Feb. 15, 1760; m. July 11, 1781, Jonas Morse, as his 2d 

wife. 
^ Jonah, b. Feb. 22, 1762; m. 1st, Betty Cranston, and 2d, Catharine 

Wheeler. 
\miliam, b. Dec. 4, 1764 ; m. Sept. 27, 1785, Elizabeth Stow. 
Lovina, b. March 23, 1767 ; m. June 11, 1787, Moses Sherman. 
Aaron, b. May 15, 1770 ; m. Sarah Dana, of Oxford ; r. Lunenburg, Vt. 

Martha, b. Feb. 5, 1773 ; m. March 9, 1796, Francis Barnard; d. . 

Stephen, b. Aug. 10, 1776 ; d. young. 



Phinehas Howe m. Dec. 11, 1764, Dorothy Burnett. Slie d. Dec. 
9, 1781, aged 45, and he m. 2d, 1783, Sarah Brooks, who d. July 22, 
1784, and he m. 3d, Jan. 4, 1798, Lydia Ruggles, of Weston. He d. 
March 14, 1832, aged 93, and his widow d. 1837, aged 84. 

jSylvanus, b. Dec. 27, 1765 ; m. May 12, 1791, Sarah Gleason. 

Elizabeth, b. April 2, 1768 ; m. 1792, Silas Gleason. 

\Jedediah, b. June 28, 1770 ; m. Sept. 28, 1795, Lydia Felton. 

Gilbert, b. May 1, 1772 ; m. 1800, Lydia Howe, dau. of Asa. 

Lucretia, b. May 22, 1773 ; d. Aug. 23, 1775. 

Lovice, b. Oct. 29, 1775 ; m. Daniel Barnes, and moved to Hub- 

bardston. 
\Phinehas B., b. July 13, 1784 ; m. 1811, Nancy Webster. 



395 



22-47- 



47- 89 
90 

91 
92 
93 

94 

95 
96 
97 

98 

99 

100 



23-52- 



52-101 
102 
103 
104 



23-53- 



53-105 

ion 

107 
108 
109 
110 
111 
112 



40-73- 



73-113 

114 

115 
116 



Artemas Howe m. May 28, 1767, Mary Bigelow, dau. of Gershom 
and Mary, Slie d. Aug. 15, 1810, aged 65, and he d. Nov. 17, 1813, 
aged 70. 

Elisha, b. Jan. 31, 1768 ; d. unm. 

Catharine^ b. Oct. 18, 1769; m. 1st, Wheeler, and 2d, Jonali 

Howe. 
Mary, b. Oct. 26, 1771 ; m. Dec. 10, 1795, Jonas Lovering, of Sud. 
Jonas, b. Aug. 18, 1773; m. Lydia Maynard, dau. of John. 
Lydia, b. Sept. 9, 1775 ; m. 1st, July 21, 1803, Isaac Maynard, and 2d, 

Abraham Stow. 
Sally, b. Feb. 5, 1777; m. March 28, 1801, Jonas Lovering, husband 

of late sister, 
jStepheji, b. March 21, 1780 ; m. Jan. 29, 1709, Susanna Brigham. 
\David, b. March 18, 1783; m. March 27, 1811, Betsey Dadnian. 
Samuel, b. March 27, 1785; moved to Coos County, N. 11. 
Levi, b. April 30, 1787; m. Abigail Bigelow, dau. of William. 
Jahez, b. Oct. 28, 1789 ; m. Nov. 1812, Roxana Gleason. 
Moses, b. April 19, 1792; m. Dec. 18, 1817, Eunice Dadman. 

The four brothers mentioned above, Joseph, Thaddeus, Pkinehas, 
and Artemas, had an aggregate of </uV/(/-nme children, Avho lived to the 
aggregate age of 301 years, and their wives to the aggregate of 332 
years ; a rare instance of fruitfulness and longevity. 



Abraham Howe m. Sept. 17, 17.55, Lydia Howe, dau. of Ephraim 
and Elizabeth, He d. March 12, 1770, and she administered upon his 
estate. He probably had a dau. Mary, whose birth is not recorded, 
and who m. Gershom Bigelow. He was killed accidentally, while 
going home from town meeting. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 6, 1756. 

Jl'aron, b. Aug. 17, 1758; m. 1792, Anno Tainter. 

Betsey, b. Nov. 12, 1760; m. Oct. 29, 1778, Oliver Russell. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 16, 1766 ; m. March 8, 1785, John Barnes. 



Asa Howe m. March 18, 1762, Rachel Goddard. 
1814. 



She d. June 10, 



John, b. Nov. 25, 1762 ; m. Dec. 28, 1785, Mary Newton. He moved 

to Maine, where he d. 
Abigail, b. May 14, 17(54. 

Mii-iam, b. Sept. 11, 1765 ; m. Jan. 11, 1787, Joseph Clisbee, 
Lucy, b. Jan. 26, 1767 ; m. July 20, 1784, Archelaus Howe. 
Asa, b. Dec. 2, 1768 ; moved to N. H, 

\Abraham, b. Feb. 22, 1770 ; m. Nov. 25, 1793, Elizabeth Wctherbco. 
Esther, b. Feb. 25, 1772 ; m. Aug. 16, 1787, Calvin Howe. 
Lydia, b. July 7, 1774 ; m. 1800, Gilbert Howe, and d. Oct. 1, 1820, 

%vithout issue. 



Joseph Howe m, Oct. 30, 1799, Eunice Howe, dau. of Josiah and 
Molly (Adams) Howe. He d. Feb. 4, 1828. She is still living. 

Charlotte, b. Aug. 10, 1800; m. Oct. 8, 1822, Samuel Howe, Jr., and 

d. 1839. 
Mary R., b. June 23, 1802 ; m. June 26, 1825, Abraham Howe, and d. 

1851. 
Dexter, b. April 11, 1804; d. Nov. 19, 1804. 
Emerson, b. Nov, 12, 1805 ; m. May 1, 1830, Lydia Bigelow, and d. 1847. 



396 



117 

118 
119 
320 
121 
122 

123 
124 
125 

126 



43-7G- 



70-127 

128 
129 
130 

131 
]3<J 
133 
134 
135 
13G 
137 



43-77- 



77-138; 

139 

140 
141 



40-82- 



82-142 
143 
144 



Eunice, b. Nov. 20, 1807 ; m. Paul Newton, of North., and d. March 

23, 1842. 
Lucy, b. Nov. 24, 1809 ; m. Benjamin F. Horn, and d. April, 1841. 
Maria D., b. P'eb. 4, 1812 ; d. Nov. 11, 1838, unm. 
Lavinia, b. June 9, 1814 ; living unm. 
Harriet E., b. July 15, 1816 ; d. Aug. 5, 1841, unm. 
Christopher J., b. June 25, 1818 ; m. Dec. 0, 1845, Lucy D. Howe, 

North. 
Eleanor, b. April 10, 1820 ; d. June 5, 1842, unm. 
Dulcena L., b. April 8, 1822; m. May, 1850, J. F. Horn. 
Josiah, b. March 20, 1824 ; d. in Cuba, 1848, unm. 
Sidney, b. June 29, 1820. 

This family will not be displeased by the addition of another per- 
son, long a favorite in the family. In 1777, before Rev. Mr. Smith 
was dismissed, he sold a negro servant, (or slave,) Dill Oxford, to 
Joseph Howe, Sen., for 00 pounds. The Constitution of 1780 made all 
such persons free. Dill, from choice, remained in the family of father 
and son, till the day of her death. She was highly esteemed in the 
family and neighborhood. Her rig was peculiarly hermaphroditical — 
wearing a skirt or petticoat like a female, and a coat after the fashion 
of a man. Such was her ordinary and holiday appearance. 



Jonah Howe m. March 8, 1792, Betty Cranston, dau. of Abner. 
She d. Feb. 14, 1806, and he m. June 15, 1800, Mrs. Catharine 
Wheeler, dau. of Artemas Howe. He d. Dec. 8, 1834, aged 73 ; and 
she d. Jan. 4, 1851, aged 81. 

Lavinia, b. May 28, 1793; m. Feb. 4, 1813, Jerry Stow. 
Betsey, b. Nov. 20, 1794 ; m. April 12, 1815, William Toombs. 
Lydia, b. June 12, 1790; m. May 13, 1823, Jacob Holyoke. 
Martha, b. Oct. 2, 1797 ; m. 1st, Elizur Holyoke, and 2d, Jeremiah 

Whitcomb. 
Tliaddeus, b. March 12, 1799 ; m. May 19, 1825, Charlotte Brigham. 
Lyman, b. Nov. 23, 1800 ; resides in Providence. 
Rufus, b. April 15, 1802; m. 1829, Sophia Tainter. 
Diana, b. Oct. 25, 1803 ; m. Nov. 18, 1824, Aaron Stow ; d. Nov. 1860. 
Cranston, b. Aug. 5, 1 805 ; m. Sarah Withington, and r. in Boston. 
Dexter, b. June 18, 1807 ; d. unm. 1837. 
Freeman, b. Aug. 16, 1809 ; m. Lucy Crosby, of Ashburnham. 



William Howe m. Sept. 27, 1785, Elizabeth Stow, dau. of John 
and Grace (Newton) Stow. He d. July 21, 1820, aged 56. She d. 
June 3, 1835, aged 67. 

Joel, b. Dec. 20, 1785 ; m. Sept. 6, 1815, Jerusha Gales. He d. Oct. 

4, 1820. 
William Loring, b. April 25, 1797 ; m. April 11, 1822, Persis Sawyer, 

of Berlin. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 14, 1800; m. April 12, 1820, Israel Howe, of Sud. 
Sarah, h.JeLTi. 11, 1806; m. Dec. 9, 1829, Israel Parminter, who d. 

1834, and she m. Jabez Huntington. 



Sylvanus Howe m. May 12, 1791, Sarah Gleason, dau. of Joseph. 
He d. Sept. 15, 1815, aged 50. She d. March 31, 1825, aged 60. 

James, b. Feb. 22, 1792; m. Nov. 4, 1819, Lucy Barnes. 
Sarah, b. May 13, 1794; m. April 17, 1822, Solomon Barnes. 
Eber, b. Dec. 1, 1795; m. Sept. 16, 1824, Louisa Bigelow. 



397 



Dorolhj, b. July 22, 1797 ; d. young. 
^TFer?//, b. Oct. 2G, 1801 ; d. 1804. 
Solomon, h, Ang. 10, 1805; d. 1833. 
Joel, b. Jan. 11, 1808 ; d. Feb. 20, 1809. 
Jonathan, b. Dec. 16, 1809 ; m. Isabella Baker. 



Jedediah Howe m. Sept. 28, 1795, Lydia Felton. He moved to 
what was then denominated the Coos country, where he was killed by 
the falling of a tree. He had Edward, b. in Marl. July 4, 179G. 



Phinehas B. m. 1811, Nancy Webster, and had James W., b. 1815; 
Ci/rits, 1819 ; Phinehas, 1821 ; Elijah, 1823 ; Joseph, 1827, and four 
daughters. 



Stephen Howe m. June 29, 1809, Susanna Brigham, dau. of 
Lewis Brigham, and had JVahum B., b. 1809; Elbridge, b. 1816; 
Benjamin S., b. 1823 ; and three daughters. 



David Howe m. March 24, 1811, Betsey Dadman, and had Samuel, 
b. 1811 ; Willard, b. 1820 ; and three daughters. 



Abraham Howe m. Nov. 25, 1793, Elizabeth Wetherbee, of Box- 
boro'. Capt. Howe d. Oct. 2, 1848, aged 79. She d. Aug. 28, 1853, 
aged 77. 

JJmori/, b- Sept. 3, 1795; m. 1817, Mary Brigham, dau. of Lewis. 

Eliza', b. Oct. 31, 1797 ; d. July 28, 1822, unni. 

Samuel, b. March 2, 1800 ; m. Oct. 8, 1822, Charlotte Howe, dau. of 

Joseph. 
Mrahnm, b. March 11, 1802; m. June 26, 1825, Mary R. Howe, dau. 

of Joseph. 
Rulh If., b. Feb. 27, 1801 ; m. Merick Houghton, of Berlin. 
Jllvin P., b. April 5, 1806 ; m. Sabra Houghton, sister of Merick. 
Mary Jinn, b. Sept. 3, 1808 ; d. young. 
Charles, b. Oct. 29, 1810; ni. April 1(), 1835, Lucy Rice. 
Harriot, b. April 15, 1813; m. George Kendall, of Westminster. 
Maria, b. Aug. 30, 1815 ; m. Rev. Charles Kendall, then of Bernarda- 

ton, but now of Petershain. 
Matthttv H., b. Oct. 12, 1817 ; r. at Baltimore, where he m. 
Lydia Eliza, b. Aug. 1, 1823 ; went South ; m. Gilbert. 



The Howes are so numerous in Marl., and have been in all periods 
of her history, that it is next to impossible to classify them. Where 
we have two or three Jfilliam Howes, as many Satnuel Howes, and 
more John Howes ; and three or four Man/s, or Sarahs, or Elizabeths, 
on the stage at the same time, with nothing in the record to distin- 
guish one from the other in the notices of deaths and marriages — it 
would not be at all strange, if the above record should assign some 
to a premature grave, or create some unwilling marriages. Nor 
would it be wonderful if I have left some in a state of single blessed- 
ness who have rejoiced in a state of matrimony. But my apology is 
that the records failed me, and the Howes have been so numerous, that 
I have not been able to furnish all with partners. 



THE HUDSON FAMILY. 

The Hudsons were among the early settlers of New England. 
William, and Francis, and Ralph, were in and about Boston before 
163(), and were among the prominent citizens, and intermarried with 

^1 



398 



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3 
4 
5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 



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some of the most influential families. But it is doubtful whether the 
Hudsons who have been in Marl, and the neighboring towns from 
time to time, descended from either of these families. All who have 
borne the name have been rather migratory in their character ; for we 
find them at one time in one place, and at another time in another — 
thus defying the labors of the genealogist. It may however be said 
of them with truth, that they have manifested a natural affinity for 
military adventures. Scarcely any family of their numbers has fur- 
nished so many soldiers in the Indian, French, and Revolutionary 
wars. 

Daniel Hudson, the ancestor of the Marlborough Hudsons, came 
from England about 1639. He was in Wat. 1040, and settled in 
Lancaster about 1665. He purchased of Maj. Simon Willard, a Pro- 
prietor's Right, for £40, situated on Gibson's Hill, in Lancaster. He 
m. Johanna, and had six or seven children before he came to Lan- 
caster, where their births are recorded. He and his wife and two of 
their daughters, and two children of his son, Nathaniel, were killed 
by the Indians in one of their incursions into that ill-fated town in 
1697. Though he died in Lancaster, he appears to have been absent 
from that town some portion of the time between the date of his 
settlement and that of his death. 

In 1673, " Daniel Hudson, of Concord, sometimes of Lancaster," 
purchased 20 acres of land in Lancaster, of John Moore, of Sud. ; 
and in 1674, Daniel Hudson, " late of Lancaster, but now of Cam- 
bridge Village," (Newton,) deeded to his oldest son, Daniel, " who is 
about to be married to Mary Maynard, of Sud., dau. of John May- 
nard," the same 20 acres of land. And in 1688, he and his wife 
deeded to their son, William, land near Gibson's Hill, in Lancaster. 
Daniel Hudson's will, dated 1695, and proved Oct. 14, 1697, mentions 
wife Johanna, and sons William, Nathaniel and Thomas. An 
Agreement connected with the settlement of the estate is signed by 
Nathaniel Hudson for himself and his brother Thomas ; and by 
Samuel Waters, in right of his wife Mary (Hudson,) Jacob Waters, 
in the right of his wife Sarah (Hudson,) and James Atherton, in right 
of his wife Abigail (Hudson.) 

Most of the male members of the family appear to have left Lan. 
soon after the death of their parents. The destruction of the Lan- 
caster Records, and the migratory character of the family, deprive us 
of most of the information necessary to give a connected view of his 
descendants. The name in the ancient records is frequently spelt 
with a t — Hutson. 



]Daniel, b. May 26, 1651 ; m. July 21, 1674, Mary Maynard. 

Mary, b. Sept. 7, 1653 ; m. Samuel Waters. 

Sarah, b. June 1, 1656 ; m. Jacob Waters. 

Elizabeth, b. June 11, 1658 ; killed by the Indians. 

Johanna, b. June 6, 1660 ; killed by the Indians. 

John, b. May 10, 1662; probably d. young. 

Anne, b. Jan. 1, 1664 ; probably d. in infancy. 

\William, b. June 12, 1665; probably moved to Bridgewater. 

Abigail, b. Sept. 7, 1667 ; m. Jan. 6, 1684, James Atherton. 

\J^athaniel, b. March 15, 1671. 

Thomas, birth not recorded. 



Daniel Hddson m. July 21, 1674, Mary Maynard, dau. of John, 
of Sud., by whom he had at least one child, viz., Daniel, b. April, 
1677. She d. in Concord, Nov. 4, 1677. After the death of his wife, 
he moved with his son Daniel to Bridgewater, where his son m. Mary 



399 



Orcutt, and had Man/, Daniel, and William. Daniel, the emigrant to 
Bridgewater, d. 1731, aged 80. Some of the descendants of this 
family moved to Hartford, Ct., where they were well known as hook- 
sellers and printers ; others moved to the State of New York. 



William Hudson was in Lancaster in 1687, and had six acres of 
land granted to him by the town " as a bounty for killing wolves." 
He probably moved to Bridgewater with his brother Daniel, where he 
m. Experience Willis, dau. of John, and d. without issue, about 1729. 



Nathaniel Hudson appears by the records of Lancaster to have 
had land set otf to him in that town, in 1718 and J 726, in virtue of 
the right of his father " Goodman Hudson." But he could not have 
been a permanent resident in Lancaster ; for in 1709, " Nathaniel 
Hudson, of Billerica, formerly of Lancaster," conveyed land in Lin- 
coln to a Mr. Buss. As far as I can ascertain, he has left no con- 
nected record of his family. The only thing I learn with certainty, is 
that he had a son JKhthaniel. The Lexington Church Records show 
that three children by the name of Hudson were baptized there in 
1705 ; and as the name of one of them was JVathaniel, and as Lexing- 
ton at that time bounded on Billerica, where Nathaniel resided ; and 
as the male children resided together in Marl, afterward, I have strong 
reason to believe that these were his children. Tiiere is also a pre- 
sumption that John Hudson, who was in Marl, soon after Seth and 
Nathaniel, Jr., was another of his children. But it must be confessed 
that tlie evidence of this is not conclusive. The whole Hudson fam- 
ily appear to have been men of arms rather than of letters ; and their 
record is traced quite as easily on army rolls, as on town books. I 
shall set down John Hudson as a child of Nathaniel, Sen., hoping the 
error, if it be one, may be pointed out. I find no record of the mar- 
riage or death of Nathaniel, Sen. He had other children, two of whom 
were killed, with their grand-parents, by the Indians at Lan. 1697. 



\jVathaniel, > bap. in Lexington, April 22, 1705. 

Abigail, j 

t(?) Jo/m, b. 1713; d. Aug. 1799, in Berlin. 



Seth Hudson m. Mary , and had eight children, b. in Marl. 

He was admitted to the church there, Feb. 28, 1727. He was a sol- 
dier from Marl, in 17.59, in Capt. Williams's Company. He was first 
a Sergeant and then Lieut., and had the command at Fort Massachu- 
setts. He had in 1720, land laid out for him in Lancaster. 



Seth, b. April 13, 1728 ; he resided at Northboro', in 1752. 

Joseph, b. Feb. 28, 1730; he was in the French war 1755 and 1758. 

Mary, b. Oct. 22, 1732. 20 Susanna, b. May 27, 1735. 

Enos, b. Nov. 20, 1736 ; he was in the Revolutionary service from Barre. 

Sarah, b. May 3, 1739. 

Ezra, b, July 30, 1744 ; was in the Lexington alarm from Athol. 

Jerusha, b. April 7, 1748. 



Nathaniel Hudson m. Dec. 20, 1725, Jane Banister, of Marl., dau. 
of John and Ruth Banister. His first child was born in Marl., the 
rest in Lancaster, where he resided at least for a period. He d. May 
23, 1753. 

Benoni, b. June 5, 1726 ; d. June 27, 1726. 
Tam^r, b. April 5, 1728. 



400 



27 

28 

29 
30 
31 

32 
33 

34 
35 



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16-37 

38 
39 
40 

41 
42 
43 
44 

45 
46 
47 

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37-48 
16-38- 



16-45- 



Beriah, b. Sept. 29, 1729 ; he was in the French war from Marl. 
IVUliam, b. Aug. 17, 1731 ; he was three years in the Revolutionary 

army from Templeton. 
Elizabeth, b, Sept. 30, 1732; d. 1748. 

JVuthaniel, b. June 27, 1734 ; ni. Martha , and resided in Grafton. 

Solomon, b. July 17, 1736; d. Oct. 19, 1747 ; was killed by being run 

over by a cart. 
Martha, b. Feb. 13, and d. April 8, 1737. 
Darius, b. April 3, 1739 ; he was in the French war from Marl. 1756 ; 

m. Dec. 30, 17(^2, Dinah Goodwin, and r. in Sud. 
Ezekiel, b. Aug. 1, 1740 ; d. at Lake George, Sept. 7, 1758, a soldier. 
Martha, b. Oct. 22, 1741. 36 Mary, b. April 22, 1743. 



John Hudson m. Elizabeth McAllister, of North. She d. May 
16, 1786, aged 66, and he m. March 28, 1787, Bethia Wood, who 
survived him. He d. in Berlin, Aug. 6, 1799, aged 86. He resided 
first in Marl., and afterwards in Berlin. In ]755, he was in Capt. 
Samuel Howe's Company in the expedition against Crown Point. He 
was also one of the Alarm men attached to Col. Abraham Williams's 
Company in Marl, in 1757. He was likewise in service at the com- 
meneement of the Revolution. It appears that he and two of his sons 
were in active service in the French war, and he and his eight sons in 
the Revolutionary war, at some period of its continuance. 

\Elisha, b. ; m. Oct. 4, 1770, Susanna Brigham. 

\Eiijah, b. ; m. Hannah Goodnow, of North. 

Miriam, b, April, 1746 ; m. Jonas Babcock, of North., where she d. 

Moses, b. Jan. 4, 1749 ; was about five years in the Revolutionary 
army from Bolton ; d. unm. 

Aaron, b. Aug. 24, 1750 ; he was in the Lexington Alarm, 1775. 

Hannah, b. July 20, 1752 ; d. in Berlin, unm. 

Ehenezer, b. May 16, 1755 ; d. in the Revolutionary army. 

John, b. May 9, 1757 ; moved to Oxford ; was three years in the Con- 
tinental army. 

^Charles, b. , 1759; was three years in the Continental army. 

\stephe7i, b. June 12, 1761 ; was three years in the Continental army. 

Elizabeth, b. ; m. Nov. 18, 1779, Levi Fay, of Marl. 



Elisha Hudson m. Oct. 4, 1770, Susanna Brigham, dau. of Samuel 
Brigham. He was in the service in the French war under Capt. Wil- 
liams, at No. 4, in 1756 ; also in service in 1758 and 1760. He was 
also in the Army of the Revolution, from Northborough. After the 
war, he moved to Canada, where he d. He had recorded in Marl, two 
children, and several others not recorded. 



William, b. March 29, 1770. 



49 Samud, b. Dec. 25, 1771. 



Elijah Hudson m. Hannah Goodnow, of North. He was in the 
French war in 1758, and 1759 ; and also in the Revolution. He had' 
several children, but we find no record of them. He moved to 
Clarendon, Vt., where he d. Francis, one of his sons, resided at one 
time in Marl., and m. 1800, Lucretia Howe, dau. of Benjamin Howe, 
and had several children. 



Charles Hudson was a three-years' man in the Continental ser- 
vice, and when his time was about expiring, he was accidentally 
killed by our own men. Two scouting parties met in the night-time, 
and one mistaking the other for the enemy, fired and killed him and 
another man. 



401 



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40-50 
51 

52 
53 



46-52- 



52-54 
55 

50 
57 

58 
59 



Stephen Hudson m. Feb. 10, 1791, Louisa Williams, dau. of Larkin 
and Anna (Warren) Williams. He d. March 21, 1827, aged 08. She 
d. Oct. 7, 1837, aged 70. He enlisted from Marl, into the Continental 
army at the age of 10, and after the expiration of his term of three 
years, entered on board a privateer, which crossed the Atlantic and 
cruised on the coast of Great Britain, Spain and Portugal, and returned 
to the United States about the time the peace was concluded. After 
the war was over, he enlisted for a Western campaign against the 
Indians; but some reverses at the West induced the Government to 
changejthe plan of operation, and the company to which he belonged 
proceeded no farther than West Point, where tliey remained till their 
term of service expired. While in service in the Continental army, he, 
with others, was taken prisoner, and carried into Philadelphia and 
thrown into prison, where for several months they sutfered extremely 
from the closeness of their confinement, the want of provisions, and 
from the wanton cruelty of the guard. The "Philadelphia Jail," and 
the " Jersey Prison-ship " will stand as lasting monuments of British 
inhumanity, and of American suffering. 

JVanqj, b. July 8, 1791 : d. unm. Sept. 30, 1853, aged 02. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 28, 1793; in. Sept. 5, 1814, Thomas Cooledge, and 

had ten children. She d. Feb. 25, 183.5, aged 42. 
f Charles, b. Nov. 14, 1795 ; he has been twice married. 
Louisa, b. May 3, 1798; m. Joseph Slmrtleff, and d. his widow, June 

17, 1825. 



Charles Hudson m. July 21, 1825, Ann Rider, of Shrewsbury. 
She d. Sept. 19, 1829, aged 23; and he m. May 11, 1830, Martiia B. 
Rider, sister of his first wife. He was pastor of a Restorationist So- 
ciety in Westminster twenty years ; represented that town four years 
in the House of Representatives, the County of Worcester six years 
in the Senate, and three years in the Executive Council, and the Dis- 
trict eight years in Congress. After leaving Congress, he was four 
years Naval Officer in the Custom House at Boston — making twenty- 
five consecutive years' service under the State and National Govern- 
ment. He has filled other public places. He has published several 
books and tracts on theological and other subjects. In 1849, he 
removed from Westminster to Lexington, where he now resides. His 
children were born in Westminster. 

Han-id Jfilliams, b. Aug. 18, 1827 ; d. July 20, 1828. 

Han-iet .Inn, b. Sept. 13, 1829 ; m. Sept. 4, 1854, Henry M. Smith, 

and resides in Chicago, 111. 
Martha B., b. April 10, 1832 ; d. April 25, 1832. 
Charles H., b. July 10, 1833; grad. a Civil Engineer at the Lawrence 

Scientific School, Harvard University, 18.55 ; resides in Chicago, 111. 
John Jfillianis, b. July 10, 1830; grad. at H. Coll., 1850. 
Mari/ E., b. March 31, 1839. 



THE HUNTER FAMILY. 

The Record of the Hunters is so defective that no full view of the 
family can be given. Nor have I been able to learn from what place 
they came to Marl. 

Edward Hunter m. Tabitha . She d. and he m. Mrs. Moore, 

of Berlin. He represented the Town in the General Court. 



402 



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3 

4 



5 

6 

7 
8 

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15 
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17 



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3 

4 
5 
6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

1-9- 



1-10- 



EHzabeth, b. April 29, 1745 ; m, Archelaus Felton. 

John, h. Feb. 6, 1747; d. 1774. 

Edward, b. Dec. 30, 1748 ; probably moved to Henniker, N. H. ; m. 

Thankful Newton ; this family came back to Marl., where he had 

Solomon and other children. 
David, b. Nov. 27, 1750 ; d. 1754. 
\Robcrt, b. March 1, 1752; m. Olive Moore. 
\Jonalhan, b. Jan. 24, 1754 ; m. 1773, Hannah Walkup. 
\David, b. , 1759 ? 9 James ? 



Robert Hunter m. 1st, Olive Moore ; 2d, Mrs. Catharine Wether- 
bee, who survived him. He was several years selectman, and one of 
the Committee of Correspondence in 1779. He d. 1827, aged 76. 

John, b. Oct. 29, 1780 ; m. April 21, 1803, Mary Wetherbee, of Stow, 

and d. 1835, aged 54. 
Betsey, b. Oct. 30, 1783 ; m. March 22, 1805, Nathan Goodale, and d. 

Jan. 13, 1851. 



Jonathan Hunter m. March 2, 1773, Hannah Walkup, of Sud. 
Joel, b. July 6, 1773. 



David Hunter m. March 16, 1794, Abigail Temple. He d. 1824, 
aged 68. 

Jane, b. March 30, 1795; now (1860) living unm. 

Edward, b. April 20, 1797; now (1860) living unm., a hermit. 

James, b. April 9, 1799 ; d. a young man, unm. 

M'illiam, b. July 30, 1803 ; unm. 

Denna, b. Aug. 30, 1805; unm. 18 ^nn, b. ; unm. 



THE HUNTING FAJMILY. 

Samuel Hunting, with his wife Elizabeth, came to Marl, from 
Needham, in 1769. She d. Nov. 23, 1814. He d. July 27, 1816, 
aged 73. 

John, b. before he came to Marl. ; d. Aug. 28, 1775. 

Elizabeth, b. before she came to Marl. ; m. Nov. 10, 1785, Peter 

Barrows. 
Alexander, b. before he came to Marl. ; m. 1794, Tryphena Eager. 
Samuel, b. Oct. 26, 1772. 
Mary, b. Jan. 28, 1775 ; d. June 17, 1788. 
Lois, h. Aug. 3, 1776 ; m. Nov. 7, 1813, Josiah Reed. 
Mary, b. Feb. 20, 1780. 
\Joh7i, b. Feb. 9, 1781 ; m. Betsey Rice. 
\Timothj, b. April 18, 1784; m. Hitty . 



John Hunting m. 1802, Betsey Rice, dau. of Jonah and Phebe, 
who d. 1832. He d. 1835. They had John D., b. Nov. 17, 1802, and 
Almira, b. Feb. 17, 1804. 



Timothy Hunting m. Hitty , and had Charlotte, b. 1809 ; 

Isaac L., b. 1810 ; Parmelia, b. 1812 ; Silas, b. 1815. 



403 



THE JEWELL FAMILY. 

"Silas Jewell, wife Abigail, and children, came to town May, 
1768 — came last from Stow," Such is the record, but the names of 
the children are not given ; it is probable that Jacob, mentioned below, 
was one of them. Coming into town at a late period, their record 
is far from being complete. He may have had a son, Lewis. 



\ Jacob, b. ; m. July 23, 1788, Mary Smith. 

Isaac, b. April 9, 177.5. 

\Silas, b. July 10, 1776 ; m. 1st, Sally Walcut ; 2d, Lucy Howe. 

\Gnstavus, b. Oct. 7, 1779 ; m. March 11, 1804, Lovisa Maynard. 

Jotham, b. March 2(5, 1784. 

Abigail, b. Dec. 7, 1785 ; m. Dec. 12, 1810, David M. Giles. 



Jacob Jewell m. July 23, 1788, Mary Smith. He moved to 

Jaffrey, N. H. 

Sophia, b, Sept. 6, 1788. 9 Betsey, b. Sept. 26, 1790. 
Xabby, b. July 10, 1792; m. 1813, Shubacl'Cleveland. 

Isaac, b. Aug. 23, 1794. 12 Manj, b. May 2, 1797. 

Roxana, b. Sept. 9, 1800. 14 Dexter, b. June 24, 1803. 
Almira, b. Dec. 19, 1805. 



Silas Jewell m. Sally Walcut, 1799. 
1818, Lucy Howe ; she d. Sept. 1.5, 1841. 



She d. and he ra. July 29, 



Mary, b. July 13, 1799. 
Lurcnia, b. Oct. 12, 1802. 



17 Isaac W., b. Nov. 30, 1800. 
19 Jlrad, b. Jan. 15, 1805. 



Gostavus Jewell m. March 11, 1804, Lovisa Maynard. 



Gustus a., b. Sept. 28, 1804. 
Moses W., b. Sept. 15, 1810. 



21 Emihi, b. Sept. 10, 1806. 

23 Charles P., b. March 2, 1813. 



THE JOHNSON FAMILY. 

The Johnsons came to this country early ; and some of this name 
are found in almost every early settlement, being, it is presumed, of 
different families. It is difficult to trace the ancestry of the Marl- 
borough Johnsons ; though it it supposed they were of the Sud. stock. 

Solomon Johnson was in Sudbury, 1639, and was made a freeman 
in 1651. He was a widower in 1654, subsequently he m. Hannah 
Crafts. He had a family by his first wife, and the following are sup- 
posed to be some of his children. Solomon was one of the selectmen 
of Marl. 1661 to 1666. 



\John, b. ; m. in Sud. Deborah Ward, and r. in Marl. 

tA*a//icf7n'e/, b. Feb. 1640; m. Nov. 16, 1671, Mary Plympton. 

j Jonathan, b. 1642 ; m. Mary . 

Joseph, b. ; m. Susanna . Nov. 19, 1667, and d. 1668. 

Solotnon, b. 1645; he was in Marl, at the opening of Philip's war. 
Caleb, h. 1646. 



John Johnson m. in Sud. Nov. 19, 1657, Deborah Ward, dau. of 

William Ward, b. 1637. John Johnson, though not a petitioner for the 

grant, became one of the proprietors of Marl, in 1657, with his father, 

Solomon, both of whom shared in the first division of the land. His 

62 



404 



2- 8 

9 

10 

11 



1-3- 



3-12 
13 
14 
15 
1() 
18 



1-4- 



4-20 
21 
22 



2-9- 



9-23 
25 
26 
27 



3-12- 

12-28 
29 
31 

3-15- 



15-32 

33 
34 
35 
36 
37 

4-21- 



21-38 
39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 



wife d. Aug. 9, 1697, aged 60. He d. in Marl. May 4, 1713. He was 
one who in 1675, met to make arrangements to meet Philip's warriors. 

John, b. 1672; d. Dec. 28, 1678,— " scalded to death." 
\Daniel, h. 1675; ni. Dec. 23, 1697, Deborah Lamb. 
Elizabeth, b. July 30, 1677 ; m. Feb. 9, 1699, Joseph Wetherbee. 
Deborah, b. August 22, 1678. 

Nathaniel Johnson m. Nov. 16, 1671, Mary Plympton. He d. 
July 24, 1718, aged 78. She d. Nov. 27, 1736, in her 87th year. 

\ Joseph, b. Oct. 5, 1672 ; m. Jan. 9, 1705, Sarah Maynard. 

Samuel, b. Aug. 28, 1674 ; d. 1740, aged 66. 

Mary, b. Feb. 1675. 

fJo/m, b. March 24, 1679 ; m. Feb. 2.5, 1707, Mary Plympton. 

Joannah, b. Nov. 7, 1682. 17 Dorothy, b. April 26, 1685. 

Jane, b. March 22, 1687, d. 1688. 19 Migail, b. 1691, d. 1693. 



Jonathan Johnson m. Mary , 1663. He d. April 21, 1712, 

aged about 70. She d. Dec. 28, 1728. 

Mary, b. Sept. 9, 1664 ; m. John Matthews. 

\WiUiam, b. Dec. 15, 1665 ; m. 1st, Hannah , and 2d, Hannah . 

\Jonathan, b. Jan. 2, 1667 ; m. Dec. 24, 1689, Mary Kerley. 



Daniel Johnson m. Deborah Lamb, of Framingham. She d. Jan. 
7, 1760. 

Solomon, h. Oct. 13, 1698. 24 Deborah, b. March 8, 1701. 

Martha, b. Oct. 6, 1703 ; m. Elisha Hedge. 

Daniel, h. Aug. 23, 1709; m. 1736, Sarah Holland, lived in Shrewsbury. 
Zebediah, b. Aug. 28, 17 — ; m. 1731, Esther Richardson, of Leicester, 
and resided in Shrewsbury. 



Joseph Johnson m. Sarah Maynard. He d. July 7, 1727. 

\ Joseph, b. Oct. 5, 1705 ; m. Nov. 30, 1727, Susanna Joslin. 
Sarah, b. March 3, 1708. 30 Zeruiah, b. Sept. 10, 1712. 

David, b. April 20, 1721 ; d. April 7, 1725. 



John Johnson m. Feb. 25, 1707, Mary Plympton. She d. July 19, 
1720, aged 39. He d. Feb. 15, 1758. 

^Abraham, b. June 13, 1709. 

Migail, b. Sept. 1, 1711; d. Feb. 10, 1760, unm. 

Elizabeth, b. July 30, 1713; d. Oct. 30, 1756, unm. 

John, b. May 29, 1715; he was in the French war in 1756. 

Mary, b. Dec. 8, 1716. 

\jyathaniel, b. March 18, 1718 ; m. Sarah Forbush. 



William Johnson m. 1st, Hannah 
and he m. 2d, Hannah . 



She d. Dec. 18, 1696, 



JVilliam, b. Feb. 22, 1689. 

Hannah, b. July 20, 1691 ; m. Jan. 20, 1713, Thomas Stow. 

Thomas, b. Aug. 28, 1694. 

Mary, b. Doc. 4, l(i96 ; m. Nov. 12, 1718, Thomas Green. 

Moses, b. Sept. 25, 1700 ; m. March 15, 1727, Sarah Bush. 

Ruth, b. Jan. 16, 1702 ; m. Jan. 26, 1725, Daniel Woods. 

Hepzibah, b. April 5, 1704 ; d. Jan. 19, 1719. 



405 



45 
47 
49 



4-22- 



22-50 
51 
52 
53 
55 
57 
58 

12-28- 



28-59 

61 
62 

15-32- 



32-64 
66 
68 
69 
70 
71 
72 
74 

15-37- 



37-75 

77 
79 
81 
82 

84 

22-50- 

50-85 

87 
89 

22-51- 

51-90 
92 
94 



Elizabeth, b. July 18, 1705. 
Meny, b. Dec. 14, 1709, 
Jacob, b. April 6, 1717. 



46 Ebenezer, b. Nov. 6. 1707. 
48 Isaac, b. April 12, 1713. 



Jonathan Johnson m. Mary Kerley. He was slain by the Indians, 
Oct. 12, 1708. 

fTlmothy, b. May IS, 1690; m. July 22, 1713, Ruth Matthews. 

\Jonathan, b. June 13, 1692; m. Nov. 28, 1723, Abigail Bellows. 

Man/, b. Sept. 5, 1694 ; d. young. 

Sarah, b. March 25, 1695. 54 Jotham, b. March 30, 1699. 

Martha, b. Jan. 2(), 1701. 56 Man/, b. Oct. 2, 1704. 

Joseph, ? 1 IV 1 uo i-n-.S ™' March 9, 1730, Hannah Bruce, 
TT I / D. iviarcn -4, i/u/;< ruci 

Hannah, ^ } [Mendon. 



Joseph Johnson m. Nov. 30, 1727, Susanna Joslin, who d. 1734, 
and he ni. Nov. 11, 1735, Thankful Morse ; he d. Oct. 11, 17.56. 

David, b. Oct. 12, 1728; d. July 16, 1732. 

Joseph, b. Nov. 29, 173(i; d. young. 

Susanna, b. Aug. 21, 1738; in. Dec. 7, 1762, Phinehas Bruce. 

Thankful, b. June 11, 1741. 63 Joseph, b. Sept. 15, 1742. 



She d. March 21, 1757, and 



65 Sarah, Sept. 15, 17.33. 

67 Ephraim, b. Sept. 25, 1738. 



Abraham Johnson m. Sarah 
he m. Lydia • . 

Mraham, b. July 2, 1731. 

Miriam, b. Nov. 10, 1735. 

Samuel, b. July 7, 1741. 

Solomon, b. March 15, 1744; d, April 25, 1749. 

Joannah, b. July 1, 17-16; d. Jan. 26, 3760. 

Dorothy, b. July 30, 1752; d. Jan. 7, 1760. 

Benjamin, b. March 19, 1760. 73 Reuben, b. May 3, 1762, 

Solotnon, b. April 13, 1765. 



Nathaniel Johnson m. Dec. 31, 1740, Sarah Forbush, of West- 
borough. 

Joel, b. Oct. 31, 1743. 76 Silas, b. April 21, 1746. 

Sarah, b. July 26, 1748. 78 Stephen, b. June 6, 1751. 

Cathnrinc, b. April 25, 1753. 80 Mary, b. Oct. 15, 1755. 

Susanna, b. July 5, 1758; d. A'ril IG, 1761. 
Persis, b. May 2, 1760. ' 83 JVaihaniel, b. Jan. 12, 1762. 

Jlaron, b. May 10, 1763. 



Timothy Johnson m. June 22, 1713, Ruth Matthews. 



JVa//Min, b. Sept. 17, 1713. 
David, b. Aug. 25, 1718. 
Eunice, b. May 25, 1723. 



86 Dinah, b. Sept. 25, 1715. 
88 Hannah, b. Oct. 15, 1720. 



Jonathan Johnson ni. Nov. 23, 1723, Abigail Bellows. 



Abigail, b. Aug. 30, 1724. 
Hazadiah, b. Feb. 22, 1729. 
Thias, b. June 22, 1733. 



91 Mary, b. Jan. 12, 1727. 

93 Jonathan, b. March 22, 1731. 



The record of the Johnsons is incomplete from the fact that they 
resided in the southerly part of the town, which fell into Southboro' 
on the division of the territory, and their record would naturally be 
transferred to the new town. 



406 



1- 2 

3 
5 
G 



1-2- 



2- 8 

9 

10 

12 

14 

1-5- 



5-15 

16 
18 
20 
22 



2-8- 



JONES. — Samuel Jones, by wife Susanna, had Jonathan, b. March 
18, 1732; Santh, b. Feb. 17, 1734 ; Ichabod, b. March 11, 1736; Silas, 
b. May 7, 1738; Timothy, b. April 9, 1740; JVathan, b. Aug. 1, 1742. 



Samuel Jones, Jr., by wife Mehitabel, had Mehitabel, b. Aug. 17, 
1749. 



THE JOSLIN FAMILY. 

Thomas Joslin, aged 43, and Rebecca his wife, aged 43, with 
their children, Rebecca aged 18, Dorothy aged 11, Nathaniel aged 8, 
Elizabeth aged 6, and Mary aged 1 year, embarked at London, April 
1635, for America. Abraham, an older son, does not appear to have 
come with them, but a short time after, he is here with the family, 
which settled first at Hingham, of which Thomas was one of the 
proprietors in 1637. Abraham was in Hingham in 1647. Thomas 
and his son Nathaniel subscribed to the town covenant in Lancaster, 
1654. Thomas d. 1660, aged about 68, and his wid. m. 1664, William 
Kerley. 

\Ahraham, b. about 1615, m. Bettrice 
Rebecca, b. 1617. 

^JVathaniel, b. 1627 ; m. Sarah King. 
Elizabeth, b. 1629. 



4 Dorothy, b. 1624. 
7 Mary, b. 1634. 



Abraham, like the rest of the family, was b. in England. He is 

spoken of as a mariner. He m. Bitteris or Bettrice . He probably 

had a brother Henry, not mentioned above in the list of his father's 
children, who was quite conspicuous in New Hampshire and Maine, in 
the early Indian wars. Abraham moved to Lancaster before 1663, 
and d. before 1670. Most of his children were b. in Hingham. 

\ Abraham, bap. in Hingham, 1649. 
Philip, bap. 1650 ; d. Aug. 2, 1662. 



JVathaiiiel, bap. 1660. 
Mary, h. in Lan. 1666. 
Rebecca, birth not found. 



11 Joseph, b. in Lan. 1663. 
13 Hem-y, birth not found. 



Nathaniel Joslin settled first in Lancaster, and after the destruc- 
tion of that town, he removed to Marl. He m. Sarah King, dau. of 
Thomas King, of Marl. . He d. April 8, 1694. His will, dated March 
3, 1694, mentions wife Sarah, sons Nathaniel and Peter, and 5 dau., 
Sarah, Dorothy, Rebecca, Elizabeth and Martha, and his brother-in- 
law, William Kerley. His wid., Sarah, d. July 2, 1706. We have 
not the birth of his children. 

JVathaniel, b. in Lan. June 21, 1658 ; d. 1667. 

Sarah, b. . 17 Dorothy, b. . 

Rebecca, b. . 19 Elizabeth, b. . 

\JVathaniel, b. . 21 Mary, b. . 

tPefer, b. . 



Abraham Joslin, of Lan., m. Ann . They had a dau. Beatrix 

or Beatrice. This family came to a tragical end. When the Indians 
attacked Lancaster, in 1675, he and his family took refuge in the 
house of Rev. Mr. Rolandson. After the most vigorous defense, the 
house was set on fire, when the only alternative was to perish in the 



407 



flames or fall into the hands of the merciless foe. Joslin was killed 
while defending the inmates of the house ; but his wife and daughter 
were taken captive, with Mrs. Rolandson, carried away, and barba- 
rously murdered in the wilderness. 



Nathaniel Joslin m, Hester Morse, 1682. She d. April 27, 
1725, a^ed (31. He d. March 8, 1726. 

Hester, b. May 20, 1683 ; m. Feb. 17, 1707, Samuel Lamb. 

Mary, b. April 14, 1G85 ; ni. Oct. 5, 1709, James Newton. 

Patience, b. Feb. 27, 1686 ; d. 1687. 

JVathaniel, b. 1689 ; d. young. 

JVathaniel, b. Feb. 22, 1691 ; m. Sarah Forbush. 

^Istael, b. April 7, 1692 ; m. Sarah . 

Martha, b. Aug. 20, 1694 ; d. May 6, 1718. 

Experience, b. Oct. 2(i, 1696; m. Oct. 11, 1727, Ebenezcr Snow. 

Abigail, b. Feb. 11, 1698; m. Oct. 31, 1721, Hezekiah Eush. 

Joseph, b. Nov. 23, 1699; m. Dec. 6, 1726, Catharine Reed, r. at 

Westboro'. . 
Sxisaniw, b. Dec. 27, 1/01 ; m. Nov. 30, 1727, Joseph Johnson. 
\ Abraham, b. April 30, 1704 ; m. May 23, 1728, Jemima Snow. 
jTliomas, b. March 10, 1707 ; m. Lucy Forbush, of Westboro'. 



Peter Joslin m. Howe, dau. of John and Elizabeth, and 

lived in Lancaster, as the following sad incident shows. On the 18th 
of July, 1692, the Indians attacked the house of Peter Joslin, of Lan- 
caster, while he was at work in the field. He knew nothing of it 
until he returned to his dwelling, when he beheld the heart-rending 
spectacle of his wife and three children, with a Mrs. Whitcomb, who 
happened to be with them, weltering in their blood — having been 
barbarously massacred by the Indians. Nor were his feelings at all 
relieved, when he found that his wife's sister and another of his chil- 
dren were carried into captivity. His wife's sister returned, but his 
child was murdered. 

The person here spoken of was Miss Elizabeth Howe, of Marl- 
borough, who after her redemption was m. to Thomas Keyes, of Marl. 



Israel Joslin m. April 29, 1719, Sarah Cleaveland. 
soldier in the French war. 



He waa a 



Patience, b. Nov. 28, 1720 ; d. Dec. 2, 1720. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 25, 1721. 38 Elizabeth, b. Dec. 28, 1723. 

JVathaniel, b. Nov. 4, 1726. 



Abraham Joslin m. 1728, Jemima Snow, of Woburn. 
July 3, 1745, and he m. Sarah . 



She d. 



Jemima, b. July 29, 1729. 

Abraham, h. Jan. 6, 1731 ; d. May 17, 1749. 

\Ebenezer, b. Nov. 12, 1732 ; ni. May 31, 1764, Lydia Church. 

Dorothy, b. July 15, 1734. 

Azubah, b. Oct. 2, 1736 ; d. June 2, 1750. 

Peter, b. Jan. 24, 1738. 46 Samuel, b. Aug. 2, 1739. 

James, b. April 13, 1741, 48 Bridget, b. May, 1743 ; d. 1749. 

Benjamin, b. July 3, 1746 ; m. 1765, Persis Carley. 

mUiam, b. Oct. 10, 1747; d. 1766. 

Submit, b. March 10, 1749. 52 Abraham, h. March 24, 1751. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 5, 1752. 54 Dinah, b. Dec. 3, 1754. 

Joh7i, b. June 2, 1757. 56 Elizabeth, b. June 2, 1760. 

Henry, b. Oct. 23, 1762. 



408 



20-35- 



35-58 
59 
GO 



61 

69 
(i3 
64 
65 

34-42- 

4-2-66 

68 



1- 2 

3 



Thomas Joslin m. Mary . She d. Dec. 23, 1737, and he m. 

Dec. 31, 1740, Lucy Forbush, of Westborough. lie was in the 
French war, and d. at Fort William-Henry, 1760. 



Esther, b. Aug. 16, 1729; m. Dec. 18, 1751, Josiah Moore. 

Mary, b. Oct. 16, 1730 ; m. Feb. 6, 1752, John Bruce. 

Susa7in(i,h. Oct. 8, 1733; m. Feb. 13, 1752, Timothy Bruce. She 

had a large family, and d. in Marl, in 1832, at the advanced age of 

99 years. 
Catharine, b. July 20, 1735. 
Lucy, b. 1741 ; d. 1743. 

Israel, b. July 13, 1743 ; m. 1769, Ann Newton. 
Thomas, b. Aug. 6, 1745 ; he was a soldier in the Revolution. 
Jonas, b. April 25, 1750. 



Ebenezer Joslin m. May 31, 1764, Lydia Church. 

Silas, b. Sept. 29, 1764. 67 Lucy, b. Oct. 31, 1766. 

ffUliam, b. Jan. 16, 1769. 

There were other Joslins in town, probably connected with the 
above families, of which there is no connected record. Thomas 
Joslin (probably No. 64) came into Marl, from Sud., Sept., 1767, with 
his wife Mary, and Lucy and Nell, his children. He d. 1810, and his 
wife, 1818. The name has become extinct in Marl. 



THE KERLEY FAMILY. 

William Kerley was early in the Colony, and was a man of con- 
siderable prominence. He had land assigned him on Pedock's Island, 
Nantasket, in 1642. Though not an original petitioner, he became a 
proprietor of Marl, in 1657, and shared in the first division of the 
land. He was for several years one of the selectmen of the town, 
and was appointed by the General Court, in 1667, to lay out a tract of 
land between Concord, Lancaster and Groton. He d. 1684. His 
will, dated 1683, and proved 1684, mentions wife Anna, (dau. of 
Thomas King,) brother Henry, brother-in-law Nathaniel Joslin, and 
father-in-law, Thomas King. He gave brother Henry his sword, 
belts, and other arms, and his military books — showing that he was a 
man of war. 



Henry Kerley, b. 1658 ; m. Elizabeth , who d. April 26, 1710, 

and he d. Dec. 18, 1713. He rose to the dignity of a captain. 

Hannah, b. 1678 ; m. March 23, 1798, Zerubbabel Eager. 
Mercy, b. May 2, 1681 ; m. Nov. 10, 1708, Joseph Rice. 

There were other Kerleys, or Carleys, as the name has latterly been 
written, in the town, but the imperfect record does not enable us to 
trace them. 



Job Carley, by wife Sarah, had Silas, b. Nov. 8, 1734, d. young; 
Sarah, b. April 6, 1739; Silas, b. May 22, 1744, m. 1769, Hannah 
Walker ; Joseph, b. Oct. 22, 1752, m. Jan. 2, 1781, Ruhamah Davis, 
of Stow, and d. 1833, aged 80 ; Joh, b. Nov. 28, 1760, m. April 17, 
1781, Christian Kuhn. 



Abraham Carley, by wife Susanna, had Mary, b. 1742; Edery, b. 
1743 ; Moses, b. 1746 ; Joel, b. 1748. 



409 



THE KEYES FAMILY. 

James Keyes was one of the proprietors of the Indian plantation 
in 1693. He may have been in the town some years before that time. 
He was probably a descendant of Robert Keyes, of VVatertown, as 
will be seen below. 

Robert Keyes was in Wat. early, and moved to Newbury before 
1645, and d. 1647. His wife's name was Sarah. 



Sarah, b. May 20, 1633. 3 Rebecca, b. May 17, 1638. 

Phebe, b. June 17, 16:39. 5 Mary, b. 1641, d. 1642. 

^Elias, b. May 20, 1643 ; m. Sarah Blanfbrd. 



Elias Keyes m. Sept. 11, 1665, Sarah Blanford. He settled in 
Sudbury. 

EHas, b. Nov. 15, 1666. 

\ James, b. Sept. 13, 1670. 9 Sarah, b. April 11, 1673. 

\Thomas, b. Feb. 8, 1674; m. Jan. 23, 1699, Elizabeth Howe. 
\John ? b. ; m. March 11, l(i96, Mary Eames. 



James Keyes m. Hannah 



He was in Marl, before 1693. 



Elias, b. Sept. 18, 1694; m. 1718, Keziah Brigham, moved to Shrews. 

James, b. Aug. 2, 1696; moved to Shrewsbury. 

Matthias, ? ^^ j^^^ j() j^,jg_ 

Jonathan, ^ 

Elizabeth, b, April 12, 1701. 17 miliam, b. Jan. 27, 1702. 

Hannah, b. Jan. 12, 1704. 



Thomas Keyes m. June 23, 1699, Elizabeth Howe, dau, of John 
and Elizabeth. She was on a visit in Lancaster in 1692, at the house 
of her brother-in-law Peter Joslin, when the Indians attacked the 
house, murdered the family, and carried her into captivity ; as stated 
No. 15, p. 382. 

David, b. Oct. 30, 1699; he fell with a timber upon his shoulder, and 

d. instantly, 1720. 
Jonathan, b. Nov. 17, 1702; settled in Shrewsbury. He m. Patience 

Morse, of Marl. 
Cyprian, b. Sept. 15, 1706; settled in Shrewsbury, where he d. in his 

96th year. 
Dinah, b. March 4, 1710; m. 1731, John Weeks, and resided on her 

old homestead. 
TViomas, b. Sept. 29, 1713; d. young. 



John Keyes m. March 11, 1696, Mary Eames, dau. of Gershom 
Eames. We have not the exact date of his coming to Marl. Proba- 
bly about the time of his marriage. His children were b. in Marl. 
He afterward moved to Shrewsbury, where he was in 1723. In that 
year he was building a new house not far from the old one, which 
was so far finished that a part of his family were sleeping in it. In 
the night time in August, 1723, his houses were consumed by fire, 
and sad to relate, three of his sons perished in the flames! Capt. 
Keyes, wife and four dau. were sleeping in the old house, and were 
saved. 

^Gershom, b. March 1, 1698 ; m. Sarah . 

Mary, b. Oct. 24, 1700; m. Daniel Rand, 1720. 



410 



26 
27 
28 
29 
30 
31 



11-24- 



11-26- 



1- 2 



2- 3 
5 



jSolomon, b. Aug. 30, 1703 ; m. Sarah . 

Hannah, b. July 9, 1706 ; m. Gershom Flagg, 1725. 
Thankful, b. May 24, 1709; m. Jonas Keyes, 1728. 
John, b. April 30, 1712 ; perished in the burning house. 
Sarah, b. March 5, 1715 ; m. Dec. 21, 1731, Joshua Wilder. 
Steplien, b. April 2, 1718 ; burned to death in the house. 

They probably had another son, who perished in the flames. The 
number which thus perished is said to have been three, and Gershom 
and Solomon were living after that period. 



Gershom Keyes m. about 1718, Sarah . After the birth of 

the children given below, he moved to Boston, and became a wealthy 
merchant. They had in Marl. iyancis,h. Dec. 5, 1719; Humphrey, 
b. Aug. 29, 1721; Lucretia, b. Aug. 18, 1723; Levina, h. Feb. 16, 
1726 ; Elizabeth, b. April 4, 1728. 



Solomon Keyes m. Sarah 
1727; David, b. Sept. 1, 1729. 



-, and had, Solomon, b. May 19, 



KIDDER.— Aaron Kidder m. March 19, 1749, Rachel Bush, and 
had Thomas, b. Sept. 16, 1750 ; Joanna, b. 1752 ; Lucy, b. 1757 ; 
Rachel, b. 1759 ; Eunice, b. 1761. 



KNAP.— Abuah Knap m. Nov. 29, 1744, Abigail Ward, and 
had Lucy, b. 1745; Abigail, h. 1748; Benjamin, b. July 18, 1751; 
Elizabeth, b. 1754. 



KNIGHTS. — Amaziah Knights, by his wife Jane, had Eunice, 
b. 1755 ; Aaron, b. July 30, 1759. 



LEE.— Jonathan and Sarah Lee had i/enn/, b. June 11, 1786; 
and William Dexter, b. March 6, 1788. 



LENNARD. — Moses Lennard, by his wife Mercy (Newton) had 
Moses, b. Nov. 1, 1706; Ezra, b. Sept. 19, 1711; Mercy, b. Dec. 1, 
1714 — and by wife Hannah, had Jonas, b. Oct. 19, 1717. 



LEWIS. — Joseph Lewis, by wife Phebe, had Thomas, b. June 5, 
1763 ; Lydia, b. 1764 ; Lucy, b. 1766; Stepheii, b. Feb. 23, 1769; John, 
b. Nov. 7, 1771. 



THE LORING FAMILY. 

Rev. Israel LoRiNG was b. in Hull, April 6, 1C82; grad. H. C. 
1701, and was ordained at Sud. Nov. 20, 1706, Avhere he d. March 9, 
1772, aged 90 years. He was probably a grandson of Thomas Loring, 
of Hingham, who was made freeman 1636. Israel Loring m. Mary 
Heyman, of Charlestown, and had John, b. April 27, 1710; Jonathan, 
b. Aug. 29, 1719, and JVathan, b. Nov. 27, 1721, and five dau. Jona- 
than settled in Marl. 

Jonathan Loring m. Elizabeth Woods, dau. of Benjamin and 
Elizabeth Woods, Jan. 4, 1741. She d. Jan. 18, 1776. He. d. Dec. 

24, 1782. 



Abel, b. March 25, 1741. 
Israel, b. Feb. 9, 1745. 



4 Heyman, b. March 9, 1743. 

6 John, b. April 7, 1747 ; d. young. 



411 



\John, b. Sept. 7, 1749; m. 1783, Mary Beaman. 

William, b. June 10, 1752 ; m. Marcli 22, 1777, Sarah Williams. 

d. and he in. 2d, 1815, Mrs. Esther Tainter. 
jThomas, b. Feb. 18, 1755; m. March 20, 1780, Pliebe Howe. 



She 



JoH.v LoRiNG m. 1783, Mary Beaman, dau. of Noah and Lydia 
(Howe) Beaman. He was a leading man in the town, represented 
Marl, eiorht years in the General Court, and held the otRce of Justice 
of the Peace. 

Phebe, b. Oct. 28, 1783 ; d. June 6, 178.5. 

Marif, b. Oct. 24, 1785; m. Nov. 2, 1808, Calvin Nurse, of Bolton. 

Sophia, b. May 2, 1787 ; d. unm. 

William, b. April 27, 1789 ; m. Oct. 19, 1825, Anna Newton; d. Nov. 

2, 1843. 
Elizuheth, b. Dec. 10, 1792: m. Oct. 17, 1819, William C. Allen. 
John, b. July 22, 1795; m. May 31, 1827, Harriet Williams. 
Elmer, b. Sept. 8, 1797 ; m. Mary M. Hastings, Boylston. 
Lydia, b. April 2, 1800 ; ni. John Clisby. 
Evelina, b. Dec. 13, 1808 ; d. unm. 



Thomas Loring m. March 20, 1780, Phebe Howe. 



Elizabeth, b. Dec. 3, 1780. 



20 Man/, b. Dec. 28, 1782. 



HoLi.is C. Loring, an adopted son of Capt. William Loring, m. 
1814, Cynthia Vilcs, of Weston. Shed. Aug. 31, 1817, and he m. 
Au"". Ci, 1818, Catharine Wilkins. He had C'//?i//ii«, b. 1815, d. young; 
and Hollis, b. May 31, 1817, m. Oct. 20, 1842, Laura W. Hitchcock. 
He has been a trader in Marl., has filled several important othces, and 
has represented the town in the Legislature, and holds a commission 
of Justice of the Peace. 



LYSCOM. — Samuel Lyscom, by wife Mary, had Mary, b. 1718; 
Abigail, b. 1720 ; Hannah, b. April 29, 1722; Samuel, b. April 1, 1724 ; 
Rebecca, b. 172(3. 



MANN.— Nathan Mann, by wife Esther, had Betsci/, h. July 5, 
1774; Milliam, b. Sept. 5, 1775; Cynthia, b. Oct. 5, 1778. 



MANSON.— Loring Manson m. July 20, 1795, Elizabeth Sawin, 
and had Hannah S., b. Feb. 15, 179(5 ; m. Truman Stow ; George E., 
b. Nov. G, 1797; m. 1821, Harriot Felton. He was in trade many 
years at Feltonville, and served in many town offices, held a Commis- 
sion of Justice of the Peace, and has for many years been Post Master 
of the place. Elizabeth, b. Aug. -.'5, 1799; .']nn, b. April 29, 1801 ; 
Almira, b. June 8, 1803 ; Sallij, b. July 29, 1805; Caroline, b Nov. 5, 
1807 ; Phebe R., b. July 23, 1808. Loring Manson was burnt out 
in Marl, and subsequently moved to Framingham. 



MARBLE. — Jonathan Marble m. Sarah , and had 10 chil- 
dren— JWcrn/, b. Sept. 10, 1717 ; Joseph, b. March 29, 1719; Jonathan, 
b. March 27, 1721; Jedediah, b. Oct. 7, 1722; Elizabeth, b Sept. 28, 
1724, m. 1742, Elias Witt; Samuel, b. Aug. 5, 172(i; Si/bil, b. June 
26, 1730; Jotham, b. July 28, 1732; Sarah, b. April 17, 1734; 
JValhan, b. July 11, 1735. 



Robert Marble, by wife Elizabeth, had Elizabeth, b. July 15, 
1739 ; Aaron, b. July 6, 1742 ; Moses, b. June 5, 1746. 



53 



412 



1- 2 
4 
5 



MARTIN.— Thomas Martin was one of the proprietors of the 
Ockoocantransett Plantation, and his name is borne oh the list in 
1()!>3, to whom land had been granted. He d. Nov. 13, 1701. lie 
probably had three children with him in Marl. 1st, JManj, who m. 
1718, Isaac Anisden ; 2d, Jldam, who m. Feb. 22, 1708, Mary Church, 
and had Elizahitb, b. Jan. (i, 1710; .kiroii, b. Jan. 21, 1712; and 
./W«m, b. AuD^. 5, ]71(). and d. Aug. 7, 171G; Mnm, the father, d. 
April 25, I71(i; 3d, Thomas, who m. Jan. 31, 1710, Mary Gove, and 
had Iluldah, b. April 27, 1711 ; Ahmhnm, b. Oct. 15, 1713; Patience, 
b. April 13, 1715; Manj, b. Dec. Ki, 1718, m. 1737, Nathaniel Stevens ; 
DorofJii/, b. 1722; Sarah, b. 1724; and Phcbe, b. 1727. Thomas, tlie 
father,"d. Oct. 4, 172!:). 



Adam Martin m. Feb. 22, 1708, Mary Church, and had Elizabeth, 
b. Jan, 0, 1710; JJaron, b. Jan. 21, 1712; Main, b. Aug. 5, 171G, d. 
Aug. 7, 1716. Adam, the father, d. April 25, 1710. 



MASON.— AarOiN Mason, by wife Abigail, had Aaron, b. Sept. 
27, 1753; Abigail, b. March 24, 1755; Huldah, b. Sept. 25, 1757; 
Charles, b. March 28, 1759 ; Moses, b. April 8, 17()1. 



THE MATTHEWS FAMILY. 

John Matthews m. Mary Johnson. She d. June 22, 1710, and 
he m. Dec. 3, 1713, Sarah (jarfield. Living in the southerly part of 
the town, his family were set otf to Soutliboro', where most of his 
children were born. 

Li/dia, b. March 16, 1C91 ; d. 1706. 3 Ruth, b. May 9, 1G93. 
Uohn, b. Jan. 18, 1695 ; m. 1718, Jerusha Bigelow. 
jDaniel, b. March 16, 1697 ; m. 1724, Eunice Morse. 



]_4_ John Matthews m. Dec. 11, 1718, Jerusha Bigelow. All his 

children but the first three were b. in Southborough. 



4- 6 
8 
10 
11 
12 
13 

1-5- 



5-14 
15 

4-10- 



John, h. Oct. 17, 1719. 7 Joseph, b. Nov. 12, 1721 ; d. young. 

Jerusha, b. March 3, 1724. 9 Sarah, h. ; d. young. 

^Barnabas, b. 1730; m. 1755, Anna Munroe. 
Si/bil, b. 1732. 

Paid, h. 1734; m. 1759, Lucy Rice. 
Thankful, b. 1739. 



Daniel Matthews m. Nov. 5, 1724, Eunice Morse. He had in 
addition to the two below, Solomon, b. 1729; Eunice, b. 1730 ; .Isahel, 
b. 1732; Samuel, b. 1734; Persis and Hannah, b. 1735; Silas, b. 
1737; Phinehas, b. 1739, d. young; Thankful, b. 1741; Aaron, b. 
1743; Pkinelms, b. 1744, and Grace, b. 1748,— b. in Southboro'. 



Daniel, b. Oct. 28, 1725 
Joel, b. Jan. 25, 1727. 



Daniel and Joel alone are recorded in Marl. 



Barnabas Matthews m. July 1, 1755, Anna Munroe, and had in 
Marl. Anna, b. May 21, 1757; Molly, b. July 21, 1758. 

This name is spelt, Matthews, Mathews, Mathis, Mathes. 



413 



THE MAYXARD FAMILY. 

The Maynards were among the first settlers of Marl., and some of 
the name remain in town to tliis day. 

John Maynard, one of the petitioners for the grant of Marl., was 
in Sudbury in UV^8, and was one of the forty-seven who shared in the 
division of the Sudbury I\Ieadows in ](W9. He was one of tlie select- 
men of Sud. He m. April ;">, Iti.'jB, Mary Gates. He moved to Marl, 
soon after the grant, in l(i57, where he d. Dec. 2i, 171 1. 

FMzabclh, b. May 26, lfi49 ; d. young. 
Hannah, b. Sept. 30, Kio.']. 
Mary, b. Aug. 3, KioG; d. March 98, 1717. 
\John, b. Jan. 7, 1(J(>1 ; m. Lydia Ward. 
Elizabeth, b. April 2, l<i(i4. 

\Shnon, b. June 15, KiCKi; m. Hannah . 

f David, b. Dec. 21, l(){iS>; m. Hannah . 

Zachariah, b. Oct. 27, 1(172. 

Surah, b. May 15, lliBO ; m. June 0, 1705, Joseph Johnson. 
Li/(lia,h. Aug. 2!t, 1()82 ; m. April 7, 1703, Thomas Haggate. 
Joseph, b. Aug. 27, l(i85 : m. Elizabeth Pruo, and had Jienjamin, b. 
May 7, 1721 ; d. same year. 



John Maynard m. Lydia Ward, dan. of Richard Ward, of Sud. 
He d. March 15, 1731, aged 70 ; and siie d. Jan. 10, 1740, aged 7(5. 
He was an ensign. 

John, b. Aug. 27, KiOO; m. July 23, 1719, Hepzibah Brigham. 

\ Daniel, h. March 1(5, lfi92 ; in. Mary . 

James, b. March 31, l(ii)4 ; m. Mary Morse, and resided at Westboro'. 

Man/, b. Feb. 10, lUiH!; d. Marcli 28, 1717. 

Rev'hen, b. Oct. 21, 1(;!>8. 18 MisraU, b. Feb. 2, 1701. 

Phinehas, b. May 20, 1703; d. July 1, 172.5. 

Ikihiah, b. Sept. 24, 1705 ; d. Aug. 7, 1720. 

\Heztkiah, b. June 17, 1708; m. June 11, 1739, Tabitha Howe. 



SfMON Maynard m. Hannah . He d. Jan. 19, 1748. She d. 

April 5, 1748. 

Hannah, b. June 9, 1()94 ; m. April 21, 1714, Joseph Crosby. 

Simon, b. INIarch 4, l(i9() ; m. Nov. 18, 1718, Sarah CImrch ; had Marif. 

FJizahdh, b. Sept. 2(;, l(i98 ; m. 1723, Robert Horn. 

Tabitha, b. Feb. 2, 1701 ; d. April 7, 1724. 

Elishn, b. March 20, 1703. 

Eunice, b. Nov. 17, 1705; m. 1730, Nathaniel Falkner. 

jEphraim, h. Oct. 17, 1707; ni. 1st, Sarah , and 2d, Jan. 3, 1743, 

Mary Balcom. 
Benjamin, b. Dec. 1, 17C9; d. 1711. 



David Maynard m. Hannah 

Kcziah, b. July 10, 17f3. 
Ruhanmh, b. Dec. 20. 170G. 
Martha, b. Aug. 7, 1710. 
Jotham, h. May 29, 1714. 



31 David, b. Jan. 20, 170.5. 

33 Jonathan, b. Dec. 2(J, 1708. 

35 Jesse, b. June 24, 1712. 

37 Ebenezer, b. May 18, 1716. 



Daniel Maynard m. Mary . He d. Jan. 1, 17()0, I am not 

confident that this Daniel was the son of John and Lydia Ward, b. 
1692. Mary, wid. of Daniel, d. April 4, 1805, aged 95. 



414 



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39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 

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46 
47 

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49 
50 
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58 
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64 

65 
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73 

28-51- 



51-74 
75 



Lucy, b. Dec. 8, 1735 ; d. unm. Oct. 25, 1817, aged 82. 

Daniel, b. Aug. 31, 1737; d. 17.59. 

Sahilla, b. Oct. 25, 1739; ni. 1761, Abner Whipple. 

\IViUiam, b. May 18, 1742 ; m. Oct. 24, 1765, Lucy Howe. 

\Jedtdlah, b. .Tan. 15, 1745 ; m. July 13, 1765, Susanna Rogers. 

\Elihu, b. April 6, 1748. 

Mary, b. July 15, 1751 ; m. 1770, Jedediah Tainter. 



Hezekiah Matnard m. June 11, 1739, Tabitha Howe, dau. of John 
and Deliverance. He d. Oct. 28, 1781. 



BdUa, b. March 22, 1740 ; d. Nov. 23, 1752. 

jHezekiah, b. Jan. 20, 1742; m. June 21, 17(59, Hannah Brigham. 

Mam, b. April 26, 1744. 



Ephraim Maynard m. 1st, Sarah , who d. May 24, 1742, and 

he m. 2d, Jan. 3, 1743, Mary Balcom. 

Tahilha, b. July 21, 1/38 ; d. May 24, 1742. 

Ephraim, b. March 7, 1740 ; d. May 10, 1742. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 6, 1743. 

\Ephraim, b. Aug. 29, 1745; m. Sept. 14, 1773, Eunice Jewell. 

\Simon, b. June 5, 1748 ; m. Silence Priest. 

\ Joseph, b. Dec. 31, 1750 ; m. Nov. 14, 1777, Lovina Barnes. 

Benjamin, b. March 10, 1753. 55 Eunice, b. Feb. 7, 1757. 



William Maynard m. Oct. 24, 1765, Lucy Howe, and had Cate, 
b. 1767, and Windsor, b. Nov. 6, 1768, and perhaps other children. 



Jedediah Maynard in. Susanna Rogers, July, 1765, and had 
Daniel, b. July 21, 1765, and perhaps others. 



Elihu Maynard m. Phebe Belcher? He d. June 20, 1806, aged 
58. He was a Lieut. She d. Feb. 9, 1807. 

Henry, b. Feb. 11, 1781. 57 quincy, b. Aug. 25, 1790. 

Zilpah, b. Jan 23, 1792 ; m. 1813, George W. Sergeant. 
Persis, b. Nov, 1, 1795; m. 1817, Barnabas Brigham. 
Mary,h. Sept. 23, 1799. 
Finis Gasscll, b. March 26, 1804 ; m. Isaac Borden. 



Hezekiah Maypjard m. Hannah Brigham. She d. Jan. 14, 1815. 
He d. March 14, 1824, aged 82. 

Bethiah, b. April 9, 1770. 63 Zadock, b. Sept. 4, 1771 ; d. 1776. 

Ahel, b. June 3, 1773 ; m. Nancy , and had William. Capt. Abel 

d. Oct. 31,1811. 
^John, b. Aug. 9, 1775 ; m. Sept. 7, 1794, Dorothy Hayden. 
Silas, b. Sept. 12, 1777 ; d. Aug. 4, 1806. 

Calvin, b. Aug. 3, 1779. 68 Hannah, b. Feb. 28, 1782. 

Hezekiah, b. Feb. 29, 1784. 
Luther, b. Aug. 9, 1785 ; d. Feb. 6, 1815. 
Joel, b. May 26, 1788. 72 Charles, b. June 9, 1790. 

Willard, b. Sept. 7, 1792; d. Jan. 6, 1815. 



Ephraim Maynard m. Eunice Jewell, 1773. She d. May 9, 1812. 
He d. Aug. 25, 1826, aged 84. 

Levi, b. March 5, 1774 ; m. 1794, Lydia Stow. 
Molly, b. March 10, 1776. 



415 



76 \\Ephram, b. Jan. 31, 1778. He m. three wives, and had 15 children. 

77 j L}jdin, b. Nov, 7, 1779; m. Oct. (i, 1800, George Peters. 

78 I LuHier, b. Aug. 21, 1781 ; m. 1804, Susanna Ma3^nard. 

79 [ Lovisa, b. May 19, 1785; m. 1804, Gustavus Jewell. 

80 I jVabby, b. April 12, 1787. 
~ Cnlvin, b. Aug. 22, 1793 ; m. 1815, Judith Walcut. 



Simon Matnard m. Silence Priest. He d. Nov. 15, 1818, aged 71. 

f Isaac, b. Dec. 7, 1779 ; m. 1803, Lydia Howe. 
Hannah, b. Dec. 28, 1782; m. Jan. 31, 1802, Peace Peters. 
John Priest, b. June 2, 1791 ; ni. 1812, Betsey Weeks, dau. of John, 
and had If'iUiani, b. March 11, 1813. 



Joseph Matnard m. Nov. 24, 1777, Levina Barnes. 



Williavi, b. Dec. 14, 1777. 8G Mdhamel, b. Feb. 27, 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 7, 1783 ; m. 180(J, Josiah Ilapgood. 
Joseph, b. June 30, 1785. 



John Matnard m. Sept. 7, 1794, Dorothy Hayden. 

Thomas J., b. March 29, 1802. 90 Martin, b. Jan. 10, 1804. 
Susanna ffalcut, b. Aug. 25, 1805. 



Ephraim Matnard in. Mary Stow, Aug. 18, 1801. She d. 1821, 
and he m. 2d, Eliza Smith, 1822. She d. and he m. 3d, Sarah Mills, 
1831. He had nine children by his first wife, four by his second, and 
two by his third. 



Jlaron, b. Oct. 4, 1802. 
Stimner,\i. March 8, 1807. 
SatmielD.,h. March 19, 1811. 
John 11, b. Sept. (J, 1818. 
Isaac (;., b. May 11, 1821. 
Maria E., b. Dec. 23, 1824. 
Louisa J., b. Jan. 8, 1828. 
Sarah M., b. Sept. 20, 1834. 



93 Mani Ann, b. Feb. 10, 1805. 

95 Ephraim B., b. March 29, 1809. 

97 .'ilmira, b. Nov. 7, 181(). 

99 Catharine S., b. May 10, 1821. 
101 Robert S., b. Mav 21, 1823. 
103 Freeman F., b. Oct. 22, 1826. 
105 Lydia P., b. Dec. 20, 1831. 



Isaac Matnard m. 1803, Lydia Howe, dau. of Artemas. 
and she ni. 1828, Abraham Stow. 

Jimortj, b. Feb. 28, 1804; m. Mary Priest, dau. of Benjamin. 
Lijdi'a, b. Nov. 16, 1805 ; m. Joel Wilkins. 



He d. 



There were other Maynards in Marl, and the neighboring towns, 
who m. into Marl, families, but they cannot be traced by the records. 

Uriah Matnard, by wife Mary, had Eliza, b. Feb. 18, 1798 ; Lu- 
cretia, b. Dec. 23, 1799 ; George, b. Nov. 15, 1802. 



MIXER. — Benjamin Mixer, son of Isaac and Rebecca (Garfield) 
Mixer, of Watertown, b. in 1679; ni. Nov. 27, 1711, Rebecca New- 
ton, and had Phinehas, b. Dec. 26, 1712, m. 1735, Mary Lamb ; Ben- 
jamin, b. March 23, 1715, m. Sarah Garfield; Isaac, b. Nov. 26, 1716; 
David, b. Dec. 22, 1718, m. 1741, Hannah Gibbs ; Joseph, b. May 24, 
1724, d. same year ; Ebenczer, b. 1729, (probably posthumous.) 

Benjamin Mixer bought land in Marl. 1701, of Isaac Howe, on the 
south side of Stony Brook, and consequently was set oif from Marl, 
when Southboro' was created. 



416 



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3 



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5 

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8 

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10 

n 

12 

13 
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MOORE.— Carley Moore, had by Avife Ruth, Brcck B., b. July 
9, 1795; Mollis G., b. Sept. 7, 1799. 

JosiAH Moore, by wife Esther, had Sarah, b. May 15, 1752. 



MORRIS.— Samuel Morris, by wife Dorothy, had Abigail, b. 
April 2, 1707; Elizabeth, b. Jan. 16, 1710. 



THE MOKSE FAMILY. 

The Morses were not among the first settlers in Marl., though they 
were in the place before 1700, and have been somewhat prominent 
and numerous. 

Joseph Morse, aged 24 years, embarked at Ipswich, Eng., April, 
1(!34, in the ship Elizabeth, William Andrews, master. He settled in 
Wutertown, where he was one of the proprietors, and was admitted a 
freeman, May (>, 1()35. He Avas the oldest son of Joseph and Deborah 
Morse, who came to America probably a year or two later than their 
son Joseph, and settled at Ipswich, where he d. 1(I4(>. Joseph, of 
Wat., m. Hester Pierce, dau. of John and Elizabeth, of Wat. He d. 
March 4, 1G91. He had 8 children, a portion of whom are not 
recorded. 

\ Joseph, b. April 30, 1G.37 ; m. Feb. 11, IGGl, Susanna Shattuck. 

John, b. Feb. 28, l(i39 ; m. 1st, Anne Suiith, dau. of John Smith, of 
Lancaster, where he first settled. He afterwards returned to Wat., 
where he m. 2d, Abigail Stearns. He was one of the first deacons 
of Rev. Mr Alger's church. He had numerous descendants in 
Wat., Needham, and vicinity. 

Jonathan, b. Nov. 7, 1G43; m. Abigail Shattuck. 

Hester, b. March 7, 1G4G; m. 1()99, Jonathan Bullard, of Wat. 

Sarah, b. June 2, 1GG9 ; m. Timothy Cooper, of Groton. 

Jeremiah, b. ; m. Abigail Woodward, and d. at Newton, 1719. 

Isaac, b. ; resided in Newton. 



Joseph Morse m. Susanna Shattuck. After the birth of his 2d 
child, he moved to Groton. where he d. 1G77 ; and his wid. returned 
to Wat., where she m. 1778, as his 2d wife, John Fay, of Marl. 

Susanna, b. in Wat. Jan. 11, 1GG3. 

Hester, b. in Wat, Sept. 11, 1GG4 ; m. 168.5, Nathaniel Joslin, of Marl. 

\ Joseph, b. in Groton, Nov. 11, 16G7 ; m. 1691, Grace Warren, of 

Wat. 
^Samuel, b. in Groton, Sept. 4, 1670; m. Grace , and lived in 

Marl. 
Man/, b. in Groton, Feb. 11, 1G72 ; m. 1694, John Barnard, of Wat. 
Hannah, b. in Groton, April 7, 1674 ; m. 1704, John Newton, of Marl. 
\Jonathan, b. ; m. 1706, Mary Howe, of Marl. 



Joseph Morse m. Jan. 20, 1691, Grace Warren, of Wat. Joseph 
Morse, Samuel Morse, Samuel Bigelow, and John Bemis, bought, 
Dec. 25, 1(j95, of the heirs of John Alcocke, 350 acres bordering 
upon Marl., known as "the Farm." Joseph settled in the house said 
to have been built by Alcocke ; Samuel built southerly, and Jonathan 
bought and built upon a tract of land adjoining, so that one garrison 



417 



would protect all the families. Joseph d. in Marl., July 11, 173'}, 
aged (j() ; his wid. d. July 22, 1753. lie came to his iann soon after 
tlie purchase, in IGiJS, 

\Joseph, h. in Wat., Sept. 27, 1G9I ; m. Nov. 1, 171G, Abigail Barnes, 

of Marl. 
Grace, b. in Wat., June 7, 1094 ; m. 171G, Jacob Hinds, of Marl. 
J\I(in/, b. in Marl, Oct. ].3, l(i97 ; m. 1719, James M:iynard, of Marl. 
Elizdlnih, b. in Marl., Jan. 4, 1700; m. 1717, Benjamin Woods, of 

Marl. 
jJoiuis, b. in Marl., July 2."), 1703; m. Lucy P]ager. 
Fntience, b. in Marl , Oct. 30, 1705; m. 1727, dea. Jona. Keyes, of 

Boylston, and iiad 11 children. 



Samuel Morse m. Grace . He resided in Wat., where all 

his children but the last were baptized. He subsequently removed to 
Marl., where he d. Oct. 22, 1726. She d. July 10, 1758. 

Joseph, non compos, from an carli/ fright by the Indians. 

|.SV/wi/e/, b. July 20, KiiK!; m. Lydia JNewton. 

Susitnnit, b. Dec. 22, KJ'.IH; m. Jan. 13, 1719, Aaron Forbush. 

Elizabeth, bap. March 24, 1700. 

Grace, bap. Aug. 23, 1702 ; kindly devoted her life to the care of poor 

Joseph. 
Jacob, bap. June 6, 1703. 28 Jonas, bap. Oct. 12, 1705. 

Eunice, h. ; m. Nov. 5, 1724, Daniel Matthews. 

Thankful, b. in Marl., Oct. 20, 1713; m. Nov. 11, 1735, Joseph 

Johnson. 



Jonathan Morse m. June 13, 1700, Mary Stow, dan. of Samuel 
and Elizabeth, of Marl., b. July 18, 1()85. She d. Fob. 10, 1727, and 
he m. 2d, May 1, 1729, Mary Church, who d. Sept. 2, 1750. He d. 
Jan. 8, 1754. 

Jonathan Morse was in Marl, in 1711, and was a.ssigned to Capt. 
Howe's garrison, witii Sanuiel Stevens, James Howe, Jona. Howe, 
Sanmel Stow, &-c. 

Zephaniah, b. Sept. 4, 1707; d. A])ril 13. 1705, unm. 

Jonathan, b. Dec. 24, L09; m. Phebe Keyes, and resided at Grafton 

and Shrewsbury. 
Miirail, h. May 12, 1712 ; m. Feb. 17, 1731, John Hapgood. 
Hepzibah, b. Aug. 10, 1714. 
Manj, b. Sept. 4, 1717; m. Seth Howe. 
Sarah, b. Ai)ril 0, 1720; m. Samuel Robbins. 
Huzadiah, b. Sept. 0, 1722. 38 Phtbc, d. unm. April 9, 1801. 



Joseph Morse m. Nov. 1, 1710, Abigail Barnes, dau. of John and 

Hannah. She d. Sept. 5, 1741, aged 4<l, and ho m. 2d, Joanna . 

He d. Jan. 22, 1750. His will, dated Jan. 17, 1750, mentions wife 
Joanna, sons Joseph, Stephen and Abner, to the latter of whom he 
gave land in Leicester, and dau. Elizabeth, Abigail, Dinah, Miriam 
and Dorothy. 

Elizabeth, b. Julv 18, 1717; m. 1742, Josej)h Newton. 

Dorotfn/, b. Feb."ll, 1719; d. Feb. 1!>, 1719. 

Bczale'el, h. March 12, 1720; d. Jan. 12, 1740, at Louisburg, Cape 

Breton. 
\Joseph, b. Dec. 2, 1721 ; m. Aug. 29, 1740, Mary Thomas. 
Stephen, b. Nov. 20, 1723 ; was twice married — left no issue. 



418 



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45 
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Abigail, b. Nov. 11, 1725 ; m. Nov. 27, 1744, John Shattuck. 

\Ahntr, b. Nov. .5, 1727 ; m. Nov. 27, 1755, Kezia Stow. 

Dinah, b. Oct. 8, 1729; m. 1747, Manasseh Stow: lived in South- 

boro'. 
Miriam, b. May 31, 1735 ; m. 1753, Jabez Rice. 
Dorothy, b. Sept. 21, 1739; m. 1760, John Temple. 



Jonas Morse m. Lucy Eager, of Shrewsbury. He d. Feb. 10, 
1779, aged 76. She d. Sept. 28, 1802, at the advanced age of 95 
years, 2 mos. and 9 days. 

\ Jonas, b. March 17, 1736; m. Nov. 29, 1759, Mary Ward, of Marl. 
\miliam, b. Feb. 26, 1738 ; m. Feb. 28, 1765, Phebe Stevens. 
Lucij, b. April 25, 1740 ; ni. ? June 6, 1771, Rev. Benjamin Brigham. 
Aaron, b. Sept. 13, 1742; d. Sept. 17, 1746. 
Lijdia, b. April 26, 1745; m. July 8, 1766, William Boyd. 
Lovina, b. June 25, 1748; d. July 17, 1756. 



Samuel Morse m. Aug. 12, 1719, Lydia Newton. She d. and he 
m. 2d, Nov., 1732, Esther Baker. He d. Dec. 27, 1755. 

Hannah, b. May 20, 1720 ; m. William Gilmer, of Winchendon. 

Lifdia, b. Jan. 22, 1722; m. ? Timothy Newton. 

Z'erniah, b. May 20, 1723 ; probably d. young. 

Vashti, b. May 1, 1726; d. Sept. 14, 1727. 

\Samuel, b. March 25, 1728 ; m. 1752, Sarah Wheeler. 

Jeduthan, b. March 9, 1730; d. in the service at Crown Point, 1776. 

Submit, b ; m. Isaac Sherman. 

Rachel, b. ; m. Mr. Green, and d. 1756. 

Deliverance, b. Jan 9, 1737. 64 Kezia, b. Jan. 7, 1739. 



Joseph Morse m. Aug. 29, 1746, Mary Thomas. After the birth 
of their first child, Sylvanus, b. Nov. 26, 1746, they removed to Boyls- 
ton, where they had other children. 



Abner Morse m. Nov. 27, 1755, Kezia Stow, dau. of John and 
Elizabeth (Brigham) Stow. He moved to that part of Leicester now 
included in Paxton. His son Stephen came to Marl, when a lad, to 
reside with his uncle ; and Abner and his wife returned to Marl, sub- 
sequently, where they d. He d. June 3, 1810, and she d. Jan. 17, 
1823, aged 90. 

Aaron, b, March 2, 1756 ; m. Relief More. 
Elijati, b. March 25, 17.58; m. Feb. 4, 1779, Abigail Howe. 
\Stephen, b. Dec. 14, 17.59 ; m. Nov. 1, 1786, Rebecca Howe, of Sud. 
Kezia, b. May 1 1, 1762 ; m. a Mr. Pike. 



74 



Jonas Morse m. Nov. 29, 1759, Mary Ward, who d. Dec. 26, 1777, 
and he m. 2d, July 11, 1781, Nanne Howe. He d. Dec.l, 1799. She 
d. Nov. 3, 1814. 

Mary, b. Oct. 23, 1761 ; d. Sept. 3, 1771. 

Levmah, b. Aug. 20, 1763 ; m. Sept. 21, 1785, Samuel Phelps. 

\iri7isor, b. Aug. 18, 1765; m. May 2, 1792, Lucy Stratton. 

Mlty, b. March 26, 1767; d. Aug. 25, 1771. 

J falter, h. July 6, 1772; m. Susan Cotting, dau. of Dr. Cotting. He 

d. at Boston. 
John Ward, b. Nov. 1, 1781 ; went to parts unknown. 



419 



75 

7G 

77 



20-50- 



50-78 
79 

80 



81 
83 



23-59- 

59-84 
85 
86 

45-07- 



67-87 
88 
89 

90 



91 
92 



93 
94 
95 
96 
97 

98 



49-71- 



71-99 
100 



]\tancy, b. June 4, 1783; d. unm. about 1833. 

Henry, b. July 25, 1785; m. June 17, 1809, Lois Hayden. 

frUlard, b. Aug. 27, 1789; m. Mary Eager. 



William Morse ni. Feb. 28, 1765, Phebe Stevens. He d. June 
26, 1802, aged 69. lie was a Lieut, in Capt. Daniel Barnes's Co., 
which marched in pursuit of the British on the I'Jth of April, 1775. 
She d. Aug. 26, 1814. 

Jlnna, b. Jan. 4, 1767 ; m. 1st, Jonathan Crosby, and 2d, Kendall. 

Aaron, b. July 27, 1769 ; m. Sarah Felton, dau. of Archelaus Felton ; 
settled as a trader in N. Y., and d. while on business at N. Orleans. 

Phthe, b. Dec. 15, 1771 ; m. 1st, March 31, 1796, William Stow, and 
2d, 1812, Rev. Dr. Puffer, of Berlin, who d. 1829. She d. Jan. 12, 
1856, aged 84 years. 

William, b. Nov. 27, 1774 ; d. 1777. 

Moses, b. June 13, 1777 ; moved to Ripley, N. Y. 

William, b. May 17, 1781 ; m. Lucinda Stow, and moved to Hillsbor- 
ough, N. H. 



Samuel Morse m. 1752, Sarah Wheeler. He d. Sept. 7, 1755. 

Dinah, b. July 16, 1752 ; m. Adonijah Newton. 

Hannah, b. Nov. 17, 17.53; m. 1777, Joel Hager. 

Submit, b. Feb. 11, 1756, posthumous ; m. Abraham Amsden. 



Stephen Morse m. Nov. 1, 1786, Rebecca Howe, of Sudbury. 
He d. Sept. 2, 1836, aged 77. Stephen Morse, as we have already 
intimated, was b. in Paxton, but when about ten years old, he came to 
Marl, and lived with his uncle, and settled in the place. 



Betsey, b. July 30, 1787 ; d. Jan. 23, 1791. 
Kezia, b. April 18, 1789 ; d. Feb. 4, 1791. 
Betsey, b. March 14, 1791; m. June 11, 1810, George Brigham; r. in 

Groton. 
Lyman, b. Nov. 10, 1792 ; m. May 8, 1816, Lydia Brigham, and had 

Porter, b. 1816; Lyman B., b. 1820; Burlamaqui, h, 1822; and two 

daughters. 
Rebecca, b. Dec. 18, 1794; m. 1822, Capt. Samuel Warren, as his 2d 

wife. 
Stephc7i, b. Jan. 16, 1797 ; m. July 5, 1824, Elizabeth Thompson. She 

d. May 21, 1816. He resides on the old homestead on " the Farm." 

He was eight years Receiving Teller in the Suffolk Bank, Boston. 

He is a prominent citizen in town, has filled repeatedly the principal 

offices in the gift of his townsmen, and is an acting magistrate. 
Freeman, b. Dec. 5, 1798; m. Martha Wilson. 
jYabby, b. Aug. 7, 1802 ; m. Josiah Wilson, and moved to Ohio. 
Mner, b. July 31, 1804 ; d. Nov. 23, 1806. 
Jlbner, b. July 4, 180(5 ; d. 1848, at Athens, Ohio. 
Gardner, b. April 11, 1809; m. 1st, Julian Austin, and 2d, Mary L. 

Brigham ; resides at New Haven, Ct, and m. 3d, Martha Belcher. 
Charles, b. April 16, 1811 ; d. July 21, 1812. 



Winsor Morse m. Lucy Stratton. He d. June 23, 1832, aged G6. 

Roland, b. Jan. 30, 1790 ; m. Polly Hunter, and settled in Stow. 

Otis, b. July 30, 1792; m. May 14, 1819, Clarissa Stow, and had Wil- 
liam and Caroline Jl. William was b. June 26, 1819 ; m. Nov. 29, 
1846, Maria D. Bigelow, dau. of Lambert Bigelow. He is in trade 

54 



420 



with his father-in-law, in the West Parish, and has erected in the 
village a dwelling-house, which for neatness, simplicity, and ele- 
gance of style, is not surpassed by any one in the town. The fol- 
lowing is a view of the dwelling. 



^^^ 




101 
102 
103 
104 
105 
106 
107 

108 
110 



1- 2 
3 



Charles, b. Aug. 22, 1797 ; d. 1800. 

Mary lVard,h. July 4, 1709; d. 1815. 

Aaron Ward, b. Oct. 13, 1801 ; m. Abigail Hale; settled in Berlin. 

Sukei/, b. Aug. 27, 1803 ; m. Henry Newton. 

William, b. June 6, 1805 ; m. Almira Whitney. 

Wesley, b. June 21, 1807; d. young. 

Dana, m. Nancy Temple, who d. Oct. 15, 1840, and he m. Nancy 

Brown. 
Wealthy m. Daniel Fay. 109 Edward, m. Mary Barnes. 

Betsey. 



There have been other Morses in Marl., who selineage I have not 
been able to trace. 

Francis Morse m. March 29, 1787, Lovice Bartlet. He d. Jan. 
30, 1805, aged 59, and she m. Isaac Howe, of Northborough, and d. 
Sept. 22, 1826, aged 69. Francis Morse was in the service at the 
opening of the Revolution, and served in several campaigns. He is 
said to have come to Marl, from Newbury port. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 4, 1782 ; m. Jan. 28, 1806, Aaron Howe, and d. in 

Leicester, August 18, 1845. 
Anna, b. June 26, 1785 ; m. April 1, 1804, Stephen Rice. 



MOSEM AN.— Matthias Moseman. by wife Sarah, had Micah, b. 
July 8, 1774. 

MUNROE.— David Munroe, a descendant of William Munroe, 
the first emigrant who settled in Lexington, by wife Elizabeth, had 
William a, b. Sept. 19, 1797; Harriet, b. Nov. 22, 1799; Mary E., b. 
July 26, 1802; Adolphus, b. July 23, 1805. 



421 



]- 2 
3 
4 
5 
6 
7 



1-2- 



2- 8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 
14 
15 



1-3- 



3-17 
18 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 
24 
25 
27 



1-5- 



THE NEWTON FAMILY. 

Richard Newton was one of the petitioners for Marl., and the 
families of that name were numerous in the township. He came from 
England, was in Sud., I(i40, and was made freeman in 1(545. His 
land was in the southerly part of the town, and on the division of the 
township, fell into what was Southborough, where his descendants 
have generally resided. He probably had two wives, Anne and 
Hannah. The record of his family is very imperfect. Hannah, his 
last wife, d. Dec. 5, 1G97 ; he d. Aug. 24, 1701, " aged about 100 years." 

\John, b. 1641 ; m. Jan. C, 1666, Elizabeth Larkin. 
jMoses, b. 1646 ; m. Oct. 27, 1668, Johanna Larkin. 

Ezekiei, b. . 

\Joseph, b. ; m. Katharine . 

Hannah, b. April 13, 1654 ; d. March 13, 1697, unni. 
\Daniel, b. Dec. 21, 1655 ; m. Susanna Morse. 



John Newton m. Jan. 6, 1666, Elizabeth Larkin. He was a pro- 
prietor of Marl, in 1660. He d. Oct. 16, 1723, aged 82; she d. Oct. 
15, 1719. 

\John, b. June 5, 1667 ; m. about 1(J90, Hannah Morse. 

jSamuel, b. Dec. 23, 16()8 ; m. Rebecca . 

\Zachariah, b. March 28, 1671 ; m. 1698, Mary Axtell. 

Elizabeth, b. Jan. 3, 1672 ; m. Zachariah Eager. . 

\Thomas, b.Dec. 24, 1674 ; m. 1698, Record Ward. 

Johanna, b. May, 1677. 

Sarah, b. Nov., 1679 ; m. Jonathan Rugg, of Framingham. 

JVathaniel, b. Feb. 8, 1681. 16 Expeiience, b. May 1, 1683. 

Moses Newton m. Oct. 27, 1668, Johanna Larkin. He was m. 
as of Marl., and of course was in the place before that time. She d. 
Dec. 25, 1713. He m. 2d, April 14, 1714, Sarah Joslin. She d. Nov. 
4, 1723. When the Indians attacked Marl., in 1676, it was on the 
Sabbath, and the people were in the church. The alarm being given, 
the congregation instantly dispersed, and sought shelter in their gar- 
rison ; but Moses Newton gallantly remained to rescue an aged and 
infirm female, who would otherwise have been exposed to certain de- 
struction. In this heroic and benevolent enterprise, he received a ball 
in his elbow, which deprived him in a measure of the use of his arm 
ever after. But ho had the satisfaction of knowing that he brought 
his friend safely from the place of danger. 

\Moses, b. Feb. 28, 1669 ; m. Dec. 11, 1C95, Sarah Howe. 
David, b. 1672 ; m. 1(597, Hannah Lenaroson ; d. April 4, 1702. 
Hannah, b. Dec. 20, 1673; m. April 10, 1705, William Orcutt. 
\Edward, b. March 23, 1(576; m. 1700, Mary Lenardson. 
\JonatJMn, b. Sept. 30, 1679 ; m. 1708, Bethia Rice. 
Jacob, b. Jan. 24, 1(581. 
\ James, b. Jan. 15, 1683. 
Mara/, b. Feb. 16, 1685 ; m. 1705, Moses Lenard. 

Josia'h, b. Nov. 19, 1688. 26 ^ndreiv, b. ; d. 1691. 

\Ebenezer, b. July 26, 1692 ; m. Oct. 25, 1722, Johanna Larkin. 

Joseph Newton m. Katharine . She d. Jan. 26, 1677, and 

he m. 2d, Dec. 30, 1679, Susanna Morse. He was a deacon of the 
church from 1710 to his death, in 1727. 



422 



5-28 
29 
30 
31 



1-7- 



7-32 
33 

34 
35 

36 
37 
38 
39 
40 
41 
42 



2-8- 



8-43 
44 
45 
46 
47 
48 
49 
50 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 

2-9- 

9-56 
57 

2-10- 

10-58 
59 
61 

2-12- 



12-62 
63 
64 
65 
67 



Hannah, b. Sept. 13, 1671. 

\Joseph, b. May 24, 1673. 

Manj, b. Feb. 16, 1674 ; m. Oct. 21, 1709, David Brigham. 

Tahitha, b. Oct. 18, 1681 ; ra. June 28, 1711, Joseph Balcom. 



Daniel Newton m. about 1680, Susanna Morse. He d. Nov. 20, 
1739. 

\Danid, b. May 29, 1681 ; m. Sarah . 

\Benjamin, b. May 13, 1683 ; m. Oct. 3, 1712, Abigail Knapp, of 

Newton. 
Susanna, b. Feb. 14, 1684. 

\Isaac, b. March 12, 1686; m. Sarah . 

\Ephraim, b. Feb. 12, 1689; m. May 29, 1711, Christian Ripley. 

\Abraham, b. March 2, 1691 ; m. Oct. 20, 1709, Rachel Newton. 

Mary, b. July 26, 1693 ; d. Aug. 12, 1711. 

Samuel, b. Aug. 10, 1695 ; d. 1771. 

jJVathaniel, b. Sept. 4, 1697 ; m. 1720, Abigail Tozer. 

Lydia, b. Aug. 24, 1699; m. Aug. 12, 1719, Samuel Morse. 

Mary, b. May 10, 1702 ; m. Sept. 1, 1725, Othniel Taylor. 



John Newton m. June 19, 1691, Hannah Morse. She d. Sept. 
10, 1732. 

\John, b. June 13, 1692 ; m. 1717, Hannah Parkhurst, of Watertown. 

Rachel, b. May 17, 1694 ; m. Abraham Newton. 

Hannah, b. Jan. 27, 1695 ; d. young. 

Hannah, b. Feb. 17, 1698 ; m. 1722, Abraham Amsden. 

Experience, b. Jan. 19, 1699 ; m. Nov. 4, 1719, John Smith, 

Ruth, b. March 17, 1702 ; m. Nov. 7, 1722, Henry Fames. 

Grade, b. Jan. 30, 1704 ; m. Jan, 23, 1726, Simon Rice. 

Deliverance, b. Jan. 1, 1705; m. Jan. 5, 1725, Jaseniah Newton. 

Phinehas, b. Oct. 5, 1707. 

Eunice, b. Sept. 1, 1709; m. 1729, Aaron Newton, of Shrewsbury. 

Patience, b. Jan. 17, 1711 ; m. Nov. 25, 1729, Uriah Newton. 

Stephen, b. Aug. 15, 1716. 

Amos, b. Jan. 25, 1719; d. Feb. 13, 1719. 



Samuel Newton m. Rebecca . 

Silence, b. Sept. 10, 1688; m. June 18, 1718, Elisha Bruce. 
\Gersliom, b. Dec. 17, 1690; m. Elizabeth . 



Zechariah Newton m. 1698, Mary Axtell. He d. Feb. 26, 1718. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 2, 1699; m. Jan. 11, 1727, Pelatiah Rice. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 23, 1701. 60 Joshua, b. Oct. 13, 1703. 

Mary, b. Oct. 2; 1705. 






Thomas Newton m. Aug. 17, 1698, Record Ward, He d, at 
Westboro', 1746, aged 72, She d. two days after, aged 69, They 
were buried in one grave, 

Martlia, b, June 1, 1699; m. Sept, 20, 1721, Isaac Tomblin. 
Thomas, b. Sept. 7, 1700; m. Ann Wilson, resided in Shrewsbury. 

Obadiah, b. Jan. 6, 1702 ; m. Abigail , resided in Shrewsbury. 

Phebe, b. Sept. 18, 1704. 66 Abner, b. March 21, 1708. 

Persis, b. April 19, 1713. 68 David, b. Sept. 26, 1714. 



423 



3-17- 

17-69 
70 
71 
72 I 
73 
74 
75 
7() 
78 
80 

3-20- 

20-81 

82 
83 

3-21- 



21-84 

85 
86 
87 
89 
91 
93 

3-23- 



23-95 
96 

98 

99 

101 

3-27- 

27-102 
104 

5-29- 



29-105 
lOG 
107 
108 
109 
110 
111 
112 

7-32- 

32-113 



Moses Newton m. Dec. 11, 1695, Sarah Howe. 



Isaac, b. Aug. 24, ; m. Dec. 8, 1719, Grace Garfield. 

Beulah, b. Feb. 22, 1697. 

Moses, b. Jan. 8, 1700 ; m. Feb. 22, 1725, Sarah Howe. 

Elisha, b. Oct. 28, 1701 ; m. Sarah Toinlin, lived in Shrewsbury. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 27, 1703; d. June 24, 1713. 

Margaret, b. Oct. 29, 1705. 

Aaron, b. Sept. 7, 1707 ; m. 1729, Eunice Newton, moved to Shrews. 

Thanliful, b. Oct. 31, 1709. 77 TabUha, b. Aug. 9, 1711. 

Amos, b. April 16, 1714. 79 Comfort, b. 12, 1717. 

Ezekiel, b. May 13, 1719. 



Edward Newton m. 1700, Mary Lenardson; d. Aug. 8, 1704. 



Edward, b. Oct. 5, 1701 ; m. 1723, Elizabeth Allen, r. in Shrewsbury. 
David, b. July 24, 1703; d. Oct. 1, 1703. 
Manj, b. Aug. 28, 1704. 



Jonathan Newton m. 1708, Bethiah Rice, dau. of Daniel and 
Bethiah (Ward) Rice. He d. 1759, aged 74. 

Tirzah, b. Aug. 16, 1709 ; m. March 31, 1730, Ezekiel Newton, of 

Southborough. 
Jonalhnn, b. Nov. 3, 1710. 
Tabitha, b. Jan. 30, 1712; d. same year. 

Bethiah, b. April 17, 1713. 88 Johanna, b. Dec. 8, 1714. 

Hepzibah, b. Nov. 1, 17 KJ. 90 David, b. Feb. 23, 1718. 

Thankful, b. July 27, 1719. 92 Gideoit, b. July 1, 1721. 

jVathan, b. June 23, 1723. 94 Elnathan, b. July 15, 1728. 



James Newton m. Oct. 5, 1709, Mary Joslin, who d. May 27, 
1710, and he m. Sept. 8, 1712, Rachel Greely. 

Mary,h. March 13, 1709; d. April 26, 1710. 

Andrew, b. Aug. 27, 1713. 97 Judith, b. Aug. 13, 1715. 

James, b. Aug. 9, 1718; d. May 27, 1720. 

Rachel, b. March 31, 1721. 100 Jacob, b. March 6, 1723. 

Joseph, b. July 15, 1728; d. July 29, 1756. 



Ebenezer Newton m. Johanna Larkin. 

Ebenezer, b. Oct. 16, 1724. 103 Edward, b.-March 16, 1726. 

Johanna, b. Feb. 28, 1728. 



Joseph Newton m. Abigail 
Jan. 12, 1749. 



He d. Oct. 3, 1744 ; she d. 



Bathsheba, b. Sept. . 

Joseph, b. Aug. 25, 1699 ; d. Feb. 14, 1713. 

^Jesseniah, b. May 1, 1702; m. Jan. 5, 1725, Deliverance Newton. 

Katharine, b. Feb. 17, 1704; d. Jan. 26, 1707. 

\Unah, b. Aug. 20, 1707 ; m. Patience Newton. 

Jonas, b. Nov. 15, 1709 ; d. July 1, 1729. 

JVahum, b. Nov. 20, . 

\Joseph, b. March 1, 1719 ; m. Elizabeth . 



Daniel Newton m. Sarah 



Daniel, b. April 14, 1705 ; he was in the French war. 



424 



114 

115 
116 

117 
118 
120 

7-33- 

33-121 
122 

7-35- 

35-123 
125 
127 

7-3G- 

36-128 
129 
130 

131 
133 



7-37- 



37-135 
136 
137 

7-40- 

40-138 
140 

8-43- 

43-141 
143 
145 

9-57- 

57-146 
147 
149 
150 
15] 
153 

29-107- 



107-154 
156 



EzeJdel, b. Aug. 27, 1707 ; m. March 31, 1730, Tirzah, dau. of Jona- 
than Newton. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 18, 1709. 

\William, b. Nov. 29, 1711 ; m. 1737, Elizabeth Wright, of Framing- 
ham. 

Judith, b. Nov. 22, 1715 ; d. in infancy. 

Judith, b. March 29, 1717. 119 Rohert, b. April 30, 1720. 

Jemima, b. March 26, 1723. 



Benjamin Newton m. 1712, Abigail Knapp, of Newton. 

Susanna, h. Nov. 5, 1713 ; d. July 23, 1716. 
Abigail, b. Sept. 4, 1717. 



Isaac Newton m. Sarah 

Keziah, b. Feb. 22, 1717. 
Man/, b. May 1, 1721. 
Martha, b. July 26, 1726. 



124 Hezekiah, b. July 28, 1719. 
126 Isaac, b. May 29, 1723. 



Ephraim Newton m. May 29, 1711, Christian Ripley. 

Sarah, b. Feb. 15, 1711 ; m. Jan. 4, 1741, John Taint. 
Azubah, b. April 1, 1713. 

\jYahum, b. April 15, 1716; m. Thankful Stow; settled in Shrews- 
bury. 
Tabithff, b. Feb. 14, 1718. 132 Susanna, b. Feb. 10. 1720. 

Bathsheba, b. May 9, 1723. 134 Hannah, b. July 28, 1725. 



Abraham Newton m. Oct. 20, 1709, Rachel Newton. 

Mary, b. , 1712 ; d. Sept. 19, 1716. 

Abraham, b. June 25, 1715. 

Jedediah, b. Oct. 3, 1717 ; d. March 19, 1719. 



Nathaniel Newton m. 1720, Abigail Tozer. 



Richard, b. May 27, 1722. 
Zeruiah, b. Dec. 6, 1726. 



139 Dorothy B., b. Jan. 29, 1725. 



John Newton m. 1717, Hannah Parkhurst, of Watertown. 



Dinah, b. Jan. 21, 1718. 
John, h. Oct. 5, 1722. 
Amos, b. April 17, 1727. 



142 Azariah, b. Feb. 5, 1720. 
144 Hannah, b. Dec. 5, 1724. 



Gershom Newton m. Elizabeth . 

^Gershom, h. April 24, 1715; m. 1744, Jerusha Bruce. 

Anne, b. July 30, 1717. 148 Miriam, b. April 20, 1720. 

\Timothy, b. May 4, 1723 ; m. March 22, 1760, Sarah Morse. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 19, 1725 ; m. 1752, Thomas Stow. 

R^ith, b. Feb. 28, 1729. 152 Zeruiah, b. Jan. 3, 1732. 

Jason, b. Feb. 2, 1736. 



Jesseniah Newton m, Jan. 5, 1725, Deliverance Newton, dau. of 
John and Hannah (Morse) Newton. 



Abigail, b. Aug. 17, 1726. 
Jonas, b. March 24, 1730. 



155 Jesseniah, b. July 5, 1728. 
157 Deliverance, b. Jin. 20, 1736. 



425 



29-109- 

109-158 
159 
IGO 
IGl 
162 
103 
164 
l()5 
166 
167 

29-112- 
112-168 

32-116- 

116-109 
171 
172 
174 

36-130- 
130-175 

57-146- 

146-176 
177 

57-149- 

149-178 
180 

109-161- 
161-181 

146-177- 



177-182 
183 

184 

186 



Uriah Newton m. Nov. 25, 1729, Patience Newton, dau. of Jolin 
and Hannah (Morse) Newton. He d. May 15, 1759. 



Bathsheba, b. Sept. 14, 1730. 

Patience, b. July 24, 1732 ; d. Nov. 7, 1752. 

Hannah, b. March 30, 1734. 

\Uriuh, b. May 17, 1736; m. Feb. 10, 1761, Hannah Eager. 

David, b. Marcli 17, 1738. 

Catharine, b. May 7, 1741 ; m. 1764, Silas Marble. 

Jonas, b. April 6, 1744. 

Jihigail, b. June 17, 1746 ; m. 1763, John Goodale. 

Eunice, b. Oct. 20, 1748 ; m. 1768, Nicholas Watta. 

Ruth, b. Aug. 14, 1751. 



JosKPH Newton m. Elizabeth ■ , 

Hezekiah, b. , 1744; d. June 9, 1777. 



William Newton m. 1737, Elizabeth Wright, of Framingham. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 1, 1738. 170 Catharine, b. Nov. 1, 1739. 

Tabitha^ b. May 7, 1741; m. Nov. 30, 17(57, Job Burnham. 
Elizabeth, b. April 3, 1743. 173 ffilliam, b. May 13, 1745. 

Bartholomew, b. May 4, 1749. 



Nahum Newton m. Thankful Stow, 1736. He settled in Shrews. 
Jonathan, b. May 8, 1738. 



Gershom Newton m. Jerusha Bruce, 1744. He was in the 
French war in 1748 and in 1756. Ho d. Feb. 27, 1800. 

Jl7ina, b. July 29, 1745. 

\Adonijah, b. July 15, 1747; m. Dinah . 



Timothy Newton m. Sarah Morse, March 22, 1760, He was in 
the French war in 1748 and in 1756. 



Minam, b. July 20, 1761. 
Jason, b. April 1, 1769. 



179 Samuel M., b. Oct. 20, 1766. 



Uriah Newton m. Feb. 10, 1761, Hannah Eager. 
Jonathan, b. April 27, 1761. 



Adonijah Newton m. Dinah . He marched under Capt. 

Howe to Cambridge, on the 19th of April, 1775. 

Lydia, b. March 2, 1771. 

Levina, b. Aug. 22, 1773; m. 1796, Roland Cutler, of Sudbury. 
John, b. Feb. 17, 1777. 185 Hannah, b. March 25, 1780. 

Dolly, b. Aug. 5, 1782. 

The Newtons residing mostly in the southerly part of the town, were 
set off from Marl, when Southboro' was erected into a town, and hence 
the Marl, record of the families is very meagre. I find several New- 
tons in town, not traceable by the Marl, records. Among these is 
Micah. 



426 



]- 2 
3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 



1- 2 
3 



1-7- 



1- 2 

2- 3 

3- 4 

5 

8 



MicAH Newton m. Jan. 2, 1745, Mary Howe, and had a family of 
twelve children. He was probably of the same descent as the other 
Newtons. He d. Aug. 21, 1800. 



Grace, b. June 12, 1746 ; m. June 4, 1766, John Stow. 

Mary, b. Oct. 11, 1747 ; m. 1767, Nathaniel Brooks. 

Lydia, b. Nov. 27, 1749 ; m. Sept. 15, 1774, Archelaus Felton. 

Ltucy, I , T^-, Tf. T7ro. S m. 1777, Jonathan Wcoks. 

Mum, \ ^- ^^^- ^^' ^^-"^^ \ m. 1777, Mercy Adams. 

Thank fid, b. Feb. 12, 1755. 

TaMtha, b. Feb. 21, 1758; d. Feb. 27, 1777. 

Dinah, b. Dec. 21, 1759. 

Silas, b. Aug. 16, 1762 ; d. March 4, 1777. 

Francis, b. April 19, 1764. 

Solomon, b. Dec. 30, 1766; d. Jan. 22, 1777. 

Phebe, b. June 1, 1768, by a 2d wife ; m. 1787, William Goodale. 



THE OAKES FAMILY. 

Nathaniel Oakes came from England, and m. Mehitabel, dau. of 
John Rediat, who d. in Marl., Nov. 25, 1702. He m. May 20, 1703, 
Mary Holloway, of Concord, dau. of Adam Holloway. 

JVathaniel, b. Jan. 7, 1703 ; resided at Bolton. 

}Villiam, b. Feb. 18, 1705 ; burned to death at Shrewsbury in the 

house of Capt. Keyes. 
Hannah, b. Dec. 27, 1707 ; m. Gershom Fay, Jr., and d. March 3, 

1806, lacking but a few months of a hundred years. She was the 

mother of Thaddeus Fay, of Northboro', who d. July 22, 1822, aged 

91 years. 
Mary, b. March 31, 1710 ; m. Feb. 20, 1735, Daniel Maynard, of Marl. 
^nn, b. Sept. 9, 1712; m. David Maynard, of West. 

\John, b. March 16, 1715 ; m. Experience . 

Jonathan, b. Aug. 21, 1717 ; moved to Harvard. 
George, b. Feb. 18, 1720 ; resided in Northboro'. 



John Oakes m. Experience , and had Elizabeth, b. Aug. 23, 

1733 ; Philip, b. April 23, 1735. 



THE PACKARD FAMILY. 

Samuel Packard, his wife and child, came from Windham, near 
Hingham, Eng., and settled in Hingham, 1638. He moved to West 
Bridgewater, where he d. 1684. He had twelve children, among 
whom was, 

Zaccheus Packard, who m. Sarah Howard, dau. of John Howard, 
and had nine children. He d. 1723, 



Solomon Packard, b. 1689; m. 1715, Sarah Lathrop. She d. 
and he m. Susanna Kingman, dau. of Samuel Kingman. He had 
eleven children. 

Jacob Packard, b. 1720 ; m. 1742, Dorothy Perkins, and d. 1777. 



Jacob, b. . 6 Oliver, b. 

t^sa, b. ; grad. at H. Coll., 1783. 



7 Mark, b. 



427 



9 I Htzekiah, b. ; grad. at H. Coll., 1787 ; settled in the ministry at 

Chelmsford, and afterward in Me. He received the degree of 
I D. D. He d. 1849. 

Rhodn, b. ; m. 1771, Abijah Stowell. 

Dorothy, b. ; m. 1777, James Richards, both of Newton. 

Phehejh. ; m. 1783, Henry Thayer, went to Winchester. 



Asa Packard m. July 27, 1790, Nancy Quincy, dau. of Josiah 
Quincy, of Braintree. Mr. Packard's life was rather eventful. At 
the age of sixteen he entered the Revolutionary Army as a ftfir. In 
an engagement near Harlem Heights, he received a severe wound, 
which nearly proved fatal. A ball entered his back just above the 
hip. An attempt was made to extract it ; but so severe was the 
operation, that the surgeon desisted, fearing his patient would die on 
his hands. A severe sickness followed, and when he was sufficiently 
recovered, he left the army and returned homo. He commenced a 
course of studies, grad. at H. C, and was settled as a clergyman in 
Marl., March 23, 1785. On the division of the church and society, 
in ]80<), Mr. Packard, at his request, was dismissed, and in 1808 was 
settled over the West, or seceding parish, and retained the pastoral 
office until May 12, 1819. After dissolving his connection with the 
society, he removed to Lancaster, where he d. March 20, 1843, aged 
85. He was in usual health, and on coming into the house, he sat 
down to listen to a letter from a distant brother ; while it was being 
read, he sunk back and immediately expired. His wife d. Feb. 3, 
1844, aged 80. 



Ann M., b. Aug. 7, 1791 ; d. June 6, 1796. 

Elizabeth Q., b. Nov. 2, 1792 ; d. 18JG, aged 24, unm. 

Frederick J1., b. Sept. 26, 1794 ; grad. at H. C. 1814 ; studied law, and 
commenced practice in Springfield. He m. 1822, Elizabeth D., 
dau. of Judge Hooker ; represented Springfield in the Legislature 
in 1828 ; and in 1829, removed to Philadelphia, and took the editor- 
ship of the publications of the American Sunday School Union. 
In 1847 was elected President of Girard College, and has received 
from Princeton the degree of LL. D. 

Asa, b. Jan. 24, 179G ; m. 1821, Lydia Blake, of Shrewsbury, and d. 
1851. 

Ann M., b. March 17, 1798 ; m. 1827, James G. Carter, and d. Dec. 
15, 1853. Mr. Carter was distinguished for his zeal in the cause 
of education, and his efforts to improve our common schools. 

Ruth F., b. March 22, 1800; m. April 12, 1831, Rev. George Trask. 
Mr. Trask is distinguished for his enmity to tobacco in all its forms, 
and labors assiduously for its extermination. 



PARKER. — The name of Parker appears in a few instances upon 
the early records of the town. 

MosES Parker was one of the proprietors of the Indian Planta- 
tion in 1695 ; but there is no record of any family. 

John Parker, by wife Mary, had John, b. Jan. 22, 1753 ; Hannah, 
b. March 15, 1755 ; Mary, b. Sept. 16, 1756 ; James, b. July 20, 1760 ; 
Sarah, b. Sept. 18, 1763. 



Josiah Parker m. Nov. 18, 1777, Lydia Beaman, and had Phebe, 
b. Oct. 23, 1779 ; Stephen, b. March 13, 1782. 
55 



428 



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4 
5 
G 



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9 

11 

2-6- 



6-12 
13 
14 
15 
16 
17 



PARMINTER. — The Parminters were numerous in Sudbury, 
and some of them were temporarily in Marl. 

Asa Parminter, by wife Eunice, had John Bolles, b. Sept. 29, 
1761. 



Eliab Parminter, by wife Rebecca, had Melinda, b. 1797 ; Ly- 
man, b. 1799 ; Lucas, b. 1801 ; Willard, b. 1803 ; Micah, b. 1805. 



PERRY. — John Perry, by wife Sarah, had Abigail, b. 1699; 
Sarah, b. 1708 ; John, b. April 16, 1709. 



PERCIVAL. — Jabez Percival, by wife Elizabeth, had Polly, b. 
1787 ; Betsey, b. 1788 ; Elvira, b. 1790. He was a physician. 



PETERS. — George Peters came to Marl, probably from Med- 
field about 1798, and m. Oct. 6, 1800, Lydia Maynard, and had George, 
b. Nov., 1800; Ephraim, b. 1803; Luther, b. 1806; Ireiie, b. 1808; 
Adolphus, b. 1810 ; Molphus, b. 1814 ; John H., b. 1820. 



THE PHELPS FAMILY. 

There have been several families in Marl, of the name of Phelps ; 
but it is probable that they were remotely connected, if at all. One 
branch of them came from Reading. 

John Phelps, of Reading, d. about 1700, leaving three sons, who 
executed an agreement in relation to his estate. 

John Phelps m. Elizabeth . They had several children. He 

d. in Reading about 1730. 

Joseph, b. . 

\John, b. ; m. Susanna Gates, of Marl. 

Elizabeth, b. ; m. Oliver Atwood. 

\Ebenezer, b. 1720 ; m. in Marl. March 29, 1753, Lucy Allen. 



John Phelps m. Susanna Gates, dau. of Simon and Sarah (Woods) 
Gates. He was a cordwainer; was in Marl, soon after the death of 
his father ; was guardian of his brother, Ebenezer, 14 years old in 
1734. Five of their children were recorded in Marl. About 1742, 
he moved with his familv to Rutland. 



Sarah, h. Dec. 24, 1733. 
Catharine, b. March 1, 1738. 
Simon, b. Dec. 13, 1741. 



8 John, b. Oct. 4, 1735. 
10 Elizabeth, b. Feb. 3, 1740. 



Ebenezer Phelps m. Oct. 28, 1742, Thankful Ward. She d. and 
he m. March 29, 1753, Lucy Allen. His children were by his last wife. 

]Stephen, b. Jan. 4, 1754; was twice married. 

Jacob, b. Oct. 4, 1755; m. Sept. 10, 1783, Prudy Dudley, Harvard. 

Molly, b. Feb. 12, 1758. 

Anna, b. July 15, 1760; m. Oct. 12, 1788, James Gleason. 

Putnam, b. Dec. 18, 1762; m. Feb. 5, 1789, Eunice Goodnow. 

Lucy, b. Feb. 15, 1765. 18 Ebenezer, b. April 27, 1767. 



429 



0-12- 



12-19 
20 
21 



22 



1- 2 
3 
5 

7 



1-8- 

8-10 
12 



Stephen Phelps m. Dec, 18, 1787, Submit Russell. She d. and 
he m. May 22, 179(5, Katharine McBride. He was one of the three 
years' men in the Revolutionary army. 

Lucy, b. April 20, 1788. 

John, b. March 28, 1790 ; left town soon after he was of age. 

Edward, b. June 23, 1792. lie lost the sight of one eye, wlien a 

young man, and afterwards became blind with the other. 
Polly, b. Dec. 8, 1794. 2:3 Lydia, b. , 1797. 



Roger Phelps, b. in Lancaster, where his parents resided. He 
came to Marl, when young. He was one of the six months' mon in the 
Revolution. He m. May 21, 178.'3, Elizabeth Rice, dau. of Benjamin 
and Susanna Rice. He d. May 22, 1832, aged 71. 



Samud n\, b. Nov. G, 1783. 

Sophia, b. Sept. 17, 1785 ; in. Oct. 4, 1804, John Boyd ; d. Oct. 30, 1854. 

Stephen R., b. Dec. 3, 1788; m, 1807, Martha Brigliam. She d. Aug. 

17, 1829, aged 39, and he m. Sept. 13, 1831, Elizabeth Gates, wid. 

of Abraham Gates. He was elected deacon of the West Church, 

Sept. 22, 1825. He had by his first wife five children. Charles, b. 

June 27, 1808, m. 18.34, Mary R. Wilson ; Roirer, b. June 2.5, 1810 ; 

Winslow, b. Oct. 20, 1811, d. 1826; Martha, b. Sei)t. 17,1813; 

John, h. May 28, 1817, m. Oct. 9, 1838, Sarah C. Wilson. John has 

been several years town clerk, and has represented the town in tiie 

legislature. 
John, b. Feb. 15, 1791. G Renjaimn, b. Jan. 31, 1793. 

Elizabeth, b. May 10, 179G; d. July 25, 1805. 
Merrick, b. Oct. 13, 1798 ; m. Nov. 1, 1821, Harriet Brighani, dau. of 

Col. Ephraim, and d. Nov. 21, 1829. 
Man/ann, b. April G, 1803; m. May 1, 1733, John Warland. 
Edward, b. March 28, 1805; m. April 18, 182G, Emily Rice, who d. 

Feb. 4, 1836, aged 29, and he m. Sophronia Rice. 



Samuel Phelps, an older brother of Roger, from Lancaster, m. in 
Marl., Sept. 21, 1785, Levina Morse, dau. of Jonas and Mary. Their 
first son, Anthony, was b. Jan. 20, 178t>; they moved to Lunenburg, Vt. 

There were other Phelpses in Marl, not traceable on the record. 



THE POTTER FAMILY. 

The Potters were in Marlborough early in the eighteenth cen- 
tury. I have not ascertained their origin or connection. 

Ephraim Potter m. Sarah . They may have come from 

Sudbury. 

Man/, b. Sept. 11, 1709; m. Jan. 11, 17.34, John Bruce. 
Martha, b. Sept. 1, 171 1. 4 Joseph, b. Feb. 3, 1713. 

Persis, b. Aug. 29, 1715. G Ephraim, b. March 5, 1718. 

Sarah, b. Jan. 2G, 1721 ; m. Feb. 9, 1744, Joseph Stone. 
\Thtophilus, b. Jan. 2G, 1725; m. 1748, Lois Walker, of Sudbury. 
Elizabeth, b. Jan. 25, 1728 ; m. April 26, 1750, Thomas Walkup, of 
Sudbury. 



Theophilus Potter m. 1748, Lois Walker, of Sudbury. 



Silas, b. June 17, 1749. 
Ephraim, b. July 31, 1752. 



11 Barnabas, b. June L5, 1751. 
13 Hannah, b. Dec. 17, 1755. 



1- 2 

4 
6 



1- 2 

4 
6 

7 

9 

10 

]1 

12 

13 



8 Benjamin, b. Aug. 10, 1789. 



430 



Benjamin Potter m. Feb. 24, 1774, Sarah Angler. May have 
been connected with the preceding family. 

Molhj, b. Oct. 21, 1774. 3 Asa, b. Oct. 26, 1776. 

Hannah, b. Aug. 30, 1778. 5 Joseph, b. April 5, 1781. 

Sarah, b. April 29, 1782. 7 Lois, b. July 22, 1785. 



PRATE. — John Prate, or Pratt, by wife Bathsheba Fay, had 
Phinehas, b. Feb. 8, 1717, and d. young. 



PRESCOTT.— Nathan Prescott, by wife Ursula Ward, had 
Stephen, b. May 16, 1736. 



THE PEIEST FAMILY. 

The Priests were at one time somewhat numerous in the north- 
easterly part of the town, but living near the borders of Bolton and 
Stow, they crossed and re-crossed the line, so as to render their record 
in Marl, very imperfect and confused. There were also several dis- 
tinct families of the name. Some of them came from Ireland. 

John Priest m. Mary . 

Mary, b. April 15, 1739. 3 Bette, b. March 2, 1743, d. young. 

John, b. Oct. 2, 1744. 5 Daniel, b. Sept, 16, 1746. 

Abraham, b. Dec. 26, 1748 ; m. in good old age, 1810, Abigail Whit- 
comb, and had several children. 

Silence, b. Feb. 9, 1750. 8 Isaac, b. July 2, 1752. 

Jacob, b. Nov. 17, 1754 ; m. 1st, Ann Jones, and 2d, Sarah Longley. 

Comfort, b. March 4, 1758 ; m. Jan. 20, 1785, Jonas Wilkins. 

Betsey, b. March 7, 1761. 

Benjamin, b. Feb. 18, 1764 ; m. June 15, 1786, Phebe Bruce, and had 
a family, but left no public record. 

Joseph, b. Nov. 28, 1765. 14 Jonathan, b. Oct. 6, 1767. 



Josiah Priest and wife Eunice came into Marl, from Bolton with 
three children, and had in Marl., Shadrach, b. 1679. He m. 1797, 
Lovisa Eaton, and had Abel R., b. 1797 ; Josiah, b. 1799 ; Eunice J., 
b. 1801 ; Heni-y, b. 1809. He was in the Continental Army in the 
Revolution. 



RAY. — Abel Rat, by wife Hannah, had Mary, b. 1722 ; Amos, b. 
Oct. 17, 1725 ; Eunice, b. 1728. He was in the French war, in 1754, 
and in the Revolutionary Army. 



REDIAT. — John Rediat was one of the original proprietors of 
Marl., and shared in the first division of the land. The family has 
long since become extinct in Marl., and the records contain but little 
concerning them. He by his wife Ann, had Deborah, b. in Sudbury, 
1652, and no doubt other children. He was father of John, Jr. He 
d. April 7, 1687, and his wife d. in October of the same year. 



John Rediat, Jr., m. Susanna , and had John, b. Sept. 19, 

1670 ; Susanna, b. Dec. 10, 1672 ; Mary, b. Feb. 6, 1674. He d. 
July 5, 1694, said to have been killed by the Indians, and his wid. m. 
John Miles, of Concord. 



REED.— David Reed, by wife Nancy, had Abraham, b. May 9, 

1787. 



431 



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3 

4^ 

5 

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7 

8 

9 
10 
11 
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14 
16 
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19 
20 
21 
22 
23 



THE RICE FAMILY. 

As the Rices were one of the earliest, so they have been one of the 
most numerous families in the town — ranking with the Howes and 
Brighams, and like them sending out emigrants to many other towns. 
If either of these families had retained all their descendants within 
the township, the population would have increased more rapidly than 
it has, though there had been no other family in the place. 

Edmund Rice, b. about 1594, came from Barkhamstead, Hertford- 
shire, England, and settled in Sudbury in 1639. He was a prominent 
man in Sudbury ; was one of the selectmen, or toivnsnien, as they were 
frequently denominated, and was one of the Deacons of the Church. 
He was honored with several appointments by the General Court, and 
was denominated therein "Goodman Rice." He was appointed to 
solemnize marriages in Marl., and enjoyed the confidence of his fellow 
citizens in both towns. He was one of the petitioners for the grant 
which was afterwards made the town of Marl., and moved to the place. 
His wife Tamnzine, d. in Sudbury, .Tune 13, 1654, and he m. as a 2d 
wife, Mercie, wid. of Thomas Brigham, the ancestor of the numerous 
Brighams which afterwards settled at Marl. He m. Mercie, March 1, 
1655, and d. at Marl. May 3, 1663, and was buried at Sudbury. His 
wid. m. 1664, William Hunt, of Marl., an early settler of Concord. 
He d. at Marl., 1667, and his wid. d. Dec. 28, i(ji>3. Edmund Rice 
came to Marl, soon after the grant of the township, and took up his 
abode on what is known as tiie " great road," on the northerly side of 
the Pond, not far from the Williams Tavern. We have no record of 
the birth of his children, and cannot set them down in chronological 
order. 

Henry, b. ; m. Elizabeth Moore, r. at Sud. and Framingham. 

\Edwnrd, b. ; m. Ann . , 

\Thomrts, b. — — ; m. Mary .' ' 

Lj/din, bap. 1627 ; m. Hugh Drury, i;. at Sudbury. 
Matthew, bap. 1629 ; m. Martha Lamson, lived in Sudbury. 
jSamiiel, bap. 1634; m. Nov. 8, 1()55, Elizabeth King. 
^Joseph, bap. 1637 ; m. Mercy King. 

Edmund, b. . 

Benjamin, b. May 31, 1640; m. Mary Brown, r. at Sndbury. 

Ruth, b. Sept. 29, 1759 ; m. Samuel Wells. 

An7i, b. Nov. 19, 1661 ; probably m. Nathaniel Gerry, of Roxbury. 



Edward Rice m. 1, Agnes Bent, who d. without issue, and he m. 

2d, Anna . He resided first at Sud., and removed to Alarl., 1664, 

and was Deacon of the church there. He d. Aug. 16, 1712, aged, as 
is supposed, about 93. His wid. d. June 4, 1713, aged 83. His two 
youngest children are recorded in Marl., the rest in Sudbury. 

John, b. about 1647; m. Tabitha Stone, r. at Sud., now Wayland. 
Lydia, b. July 30, 1648; d. same day. 15 Lydia, b. Dec. 10, 1649. 
Edmund, b. Dec. 9, 16.53 ; m. Joyce Russell, r. at Wayland. 
'[Daniel, b. Nov. 8, 1655 ; m. Bethia Ward. 
Caleb, b. Feb. 8, 1657 ; d. April 27, 1658. 

]Jacob, b. , 1660 ; m. Mary . 

Anna, b. Nov. 19, 1661 ; m. Thomas Rice, as his 2d wife. 
Dorcas, b. Jan. 29, 1664 ; m. Thomas Forbush. 
\Benjamin, b. Dec. 22, 1666 ; m. Mary Graves. 

Abigail, b. May 9, 1671 ; m. 1699, Samuel Forbush, a brother of the 
above Thomas. 



432 



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4-94 
25 

26 
27 

28 

29 
80 

31 
32 
33 
"^34 
35 
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38 
39 
40 
41 
42 
43 
44 
45 
46 



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48 
49 
50 
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52 
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54 
55 
56 



Thomas Rice m. Mary , and resided in Sud. till 1664, when 

he moved to Marl., of which township he was a proprietor. He d. 
Nov. 16, 1681. He had thirteen children, six of whom were b. in 
Sudbury, the rest in Marlboro'- 

Grace, b. ; d. at Sud. Jan. 13, 1654. 

\Thomas, b. June 30, 1654; m. Mary . 

Munj, b. Sept. 4, 1656 ; m. 1(!78, Josiah White. 
]Pder, b. Oct. 24, 1658 ; m. 1688, Mary Howe. 
JVathaniel, b. Jan. 3, 1660 ; ni. 1, Sarah , and 2d, Patience Stone, 

d. 1726. 

Sarah, b. Jan. 15, 1662 ; m. Adams, and d. at the age of 80. 

Ephraim, b. April 15, 1665; he was twice m., resided in Sudbury, was 

a proprietor of Worcester. 
\Gershotn, b. May 9, 1667; m. Elizabeth Haynes. 
jJames, b. March 6, 1(J69 ; m. Sarah Stone. 
Frances, b. Feb. 3, 1671 ; m. Benjamin Allen, 
'Jonas, b. March 6, 1(j73 ; m. Mary Stone, r. at Worcester. 
Grace, b. Jan. 15, l(i75; m. Nathaniel Moore. 
Elisha, b. Dec. 11, 1679; m. Elizabeth , r. at Sud. and Worcester. 



Samuel Rice m. Nov. 8, 16.55, Elizabeth King. She d. 1667, and 
he m. 2d, Sept. 1668, Mary Brown. She d. in Concord, where they 
had probably retired during the Indian war, 1675, and he m. 3d, 
Sarah, wid. of James Hosmer, of Concord, Dec. 13, 1676. The births 
of his four eldest children are recorded in Sudbury, the births of the 
others are found in Marl., except the youngest, which is in Concord. 
He probably came to Marl, about 1662, and d. there, Feb. 2.5, 1685, 
aged about 51. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 26, 1()56; m. Jan. 2. 1677, Peter Haynes, r. Sud. 
Hannah, b. 1658 ; ra. 1681, Jonathan Hubbard, r. at Concord. 

\ Joshua, b. April 19, 16()1 ; m. Mary , r. at Marlboro'. 

\Edmund, b. 1663; rn. Nov. 15, 1()92, Ruth Parker, of Roxbury. 
Esther, b. Sept. 18, 1665; m. — ^ Hubbard. 

Samuel, b. Oct. 14, 1667; m. Abigail Clapp, r. Milton and Sudbury. 
Manj, b. Aug. 6, 1669. 

\Edward, b. June 20, 1672; m. Lydia Fairbanks. 
Abigail, b. March 10, 1674 ; m. Palmer Goulding. 
Joseph, b. May 16, 1678 ; probably the Joseph Rice, who m. Mary 
Townsend, at Boston, June 25, 1701. 



Joseph Rice m. May 4, 1653, Mercy King, who probably d. soon 
after ; and he m. Sd, Martha, who d. at Marl. Jan. 4, 16()9. He m. 3d, 
Mary Beers, of Waterto wn, 1670. She d. there May 13, 1677. He 
m. 4th, Sarah, by whom he had two children at Wat., and one, the 
youngest, at Marl. He probably left Marl, during Philip's war, and 
resided in Wat., but returned after the peace. 

Rebecca, b. April 6, 1660, at Sud. 

Martha, b. Jan. 14, 1662; m. Jonathan Cooledge ; r. at Watertown. 

Josiah, h. May 3, 1663. 

fCa/ei, b. May 19, 16(i6; m. May 21, 1696, Mary Ward. 

\Joseph, b. June .5, 1671 ; m. Nov. 10, 1708, Mercy Kerley. 

Eteazer, b. Oct. 26, 1672 ; d. young. 

Mary, b. Aug. 6, 1674 ; m. David Stone ; r. at Wat. 

Jonathan, b. March 26, 1679 ; m. Anna Derby ; r. at Sud, 

Sarah, b. Feb. 14, 1681 ; d. June, 1681. 

Phinehas, b. Aug. 24, 1682 ; m. Elizabeth Willard ; r. Sud. and Stow. 



•433 



3-17- 



17-57 

58 
59 
(iO 
(il 
(j2 
63 
64 

3-19- 



19-65 

6G 
67 
(58 
69 
70 
71 

Tl 
73 

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22-74 

75 

76 

77 



79 
80 
81 
82 



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84 

85 

87 



89 



Daniel Rice m. Feb. 10, 1G81, Bethiah Ward, dau. of Dea. William 
Ward. She d. Dec. 8, 1721, aged (i.3: and lie in. May 9, 172.5, Eliza- 
beth (Wells) Wheeler, wid. of John Wheeler. He d. July 6, 1737, in 
his 82d year. 

Bethiah,h. Oct. 29, 1682; m. Oct. 28, 1708, Jonathan Newton. 
\Damel, b. June 3, 1084 ; m. Elizabeth Taylor ; r. at Marl, and Shrews. 
Judith, b. Sept. 29, 1G87. 

\Lnke, b. Nov. 30, 1689; m. Rachel Stow; r. at Marl, and Shrews. 
Priscilla, b. April 6, 1692; d. unin. Dec. 24, 1721. 
jEleazer, b, May 16, 1695; ni. Thankful Fletcher. 
Deborah, b. Nov. 14, 1697 ; m. James Brown, as 2d wife. 
Hopcstill, b. Oct. 22, 1702; m. Edward Wilson: r. at Shrews. 



Jacob Rice m. Mary . He d. Oct. 30, 1746, aged 86 years, 8 

months and 28 days. She d. Oct. (5, 1752, aged 80. 

Amos, b. Dec. 23, 1693 ; m. Mary ; settled in Brookfield, and was 

a deacon. 
Martha, b. July 28, 1696 ; m. Elisha Rice. 

Obadiah, b. Nov. 13, 1698; m. P^sther Merrick ; settled in Brookfield. 
Esther, b. Jan. 2(), 1701 ; m. 1727, Jonathan Jennings, Brookfield. 
Eunice, b. Feb. 11, 1703; d. Nov. II, 1715. 
Mart/, b. July 14, 1705; d. unm. at :Marl., Feb. 1804, aged 99. 
Jacob, b. Oct. 3, 1707 ; m. Hannah Howe ; r. at VVestboro' and North- 

boro'. 
jGershom, b. May 2, 1710 ; m. Lydia Barrett. 
Bethiah, b. Aug. 13, 1712; m. Jesse Biigham. 



BENJAwm Rice m. April 1, 1691, Mary Graves, of Sudbury. She 
d. Oct. 22, 1736, aged 6(j ; he d. Feb. 23, 1749, in his 83d year. 

Jlxanah, b. Aug. 13, 1693 ; m. Hannah , and r. at Brookfield, where 

he d. 1779. 
Lydia, b. June 6, 1G95; m. Cyprian Rice. 

Elizal)eth, b. Dec. 9, 1697 ; m. 1723, Ephraim Howe; r. at Marl. 
Simon, b. Jan. 9, 1()99; in. Grace Newton; r. at Westboro'. 



78 \\Zcrubl)abel, b. Jan. 1, 170*: m. Elizabeth Barrett, of Marl. 



Rachel, b. Nov. 2, 1703; m. May 20, 1724, Abraham Howe. 
^Matthias, b. April 4, 1706; m. Anna Bigelow. 
Priscilla, b. Sept. 10, 1708 ; m. 1742, Joseph Partridge. 
Damaris, b. July 20, 1711 ; m. Jonathan Brigham, Jr. ; r. at Marl. 



Thomas Rice m. Mary , and resided in Marl. She d. at Wat., 

1677, whither she had retired for safety from the Indians in Philip's 
war. He m. 2d, Anna Rice, his cousin, 1681. By a division of 
Marl, in 1717, his residence fell within West., where he was one of the 
original members of the church. He represented Marl, several years 
in the General Court. He d. 1748, aged 94. 

Thomas, b. 168.3 ; m. Mary Oakes ; r. in Westboro'. 

Charles, b. July 7, 1684; m. April 29, 1711, Rachel Wheeler; r. in 

Westboro'. 
Eunice, b. May 3, 1686. |86 Jason, b. Feb. 23, 1688. 

Jedcdiah, b. June 10, 1690 ; m. May 7, 1713, Dorcas Wheeler, of Marl., 

and d. April 27, 1715, aged 25. He had Phebe, b. Nov. 1, 1714. 

His wid. m. 1719, Samuel Davis. 
Jihiel, b. and d. Dec. I(i92. ^ mi . • 

Anna, b. and d. Dec. 1692. \ ^'^^^ "^^'^ ^^^^"«- 



434 



00 
91 



92 
93 
94 

95 



4-27- 



27-9(1 

97 

98 

99 

100 

101 

102 

103 

104 

105 

106 



4-31- 



4-32- 



7-39- 



39-107 
108 
109 
110 



111 



7-40- 



Jlshur, b. July 6, 1694 ; m. Tabitha . He was captured by the 

Indians. 

Adonijah, b. Aug. 11, 1696; he was taken by the Indians, Aug. 8, 
1704, with his brother Ashur, and carried to Canada. Ashur was 
redeemed by his father and returned to Westboro' ; but Adonijah 
never returned. Their cousins Silas and Timothy were taken at the 
same time. 

Pertz, b. July 23. 1698 ; m. Lydia ; resided at West. 

Vashti, b. March 7, 1700 ; m. Daniel Hardy, at West, Dec. 22, 1727. 

Beriah, h. Aug. 20, 1702; m. Mary Goodnow. They resided first at 
West., and then at Annapolis, N. S. 

jYoah, b. ; m. Hannah Warren ; r. at West. 



Peter Rice m. 1688, Rebecca Howe, dau. of Abraham and Han- 
nah (Ward) Howe. She d. May 10, 1749, aged 81 years, 3 months 
and 8 days. He d. Nov. 28, 1753, aged 95 years, 1 month and 4 
days. He was a captain of the train-band, and one of the committee 
who designated the garrison houses in 1711, to which the families 
were to resort in time of danger. 



Elisha, b. Dec. 2, 1690 ; m. Martha Rice ; resided at Brookfield. 

Zipporah ) ^_ jj^^_ j^ jggj ^^^.^^^ 

Zephanian, ^ ' 

Ci/prian, b. 1693 ; m. Lydia Rice ; settled at Brookfield. 

Pelatiah, b. July 25, 1694 ; m. Sarah Newton ; r. at West. 

Elnathan, b. Jan. 28, 1698; d. 1716. 

Peter, b. Sept. 24, 1700; m. Dinah Woolcot; r. at Brookfield. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 5, 1702 ; m. Ezekiel Bowker. 

Deborah, b. May 22, 1704. 

Rebecca, bap. Sept. 27, 1706 ; m. Dec. 16, 1746, Uriah Eager. 

\Abraham, b. June 29, 1709 ; m. Jan. 21, 1736, Persis Robinson. 



Gershom Rice m. Elizabeth Haynes. He removed to Groton, Ct., 
before 1698, and returned to Marl, before 1713, when he was a peti- 
tioner for a new settlement at Worcester, which had been broken up 
by the Indians. Gershom Rice removed to Wor. He had a family 
of 6 or 7 children, who settled in and about Worcester. 



James Rice m. Sarah Stone, of Sud., had 4 children b. in Marl., 
and afterwards moved to Worcester, where his children mostly set- 
tled. 



Joshua Rice m. Mary . He d. in Marl. June 23, 1734, aged 

73. He was a proprietor of Worcester, where he resided for a short 
time, when he returned to Marl. His wid. d. at Marl. Dec, 1766, 
aged 95. 

Samuel, b. Feb. 11, 1693 ; resided in Wor., where he d. 1781, aged 88. 
N'ahum, b. Sept. 3, 1695; he was insane, and had a guardian, 1742. 
Sarah, b. June 1, 1698 ; d. unm., April 3, 1778, aged 80. 
Zephaniah, b. Sept. 22, 1700 ; m. Mary Hey wood, of Wor., where he 

lived. 
\Andrew, b. Jan. 18, 1703 ; m. Hannah Barnes ; r. in Marl. 



Edmund Rice m. Nov. 15, 1692, Ruth Parker, of Roxbury. He 
resided in that part of Marl, which was set off to form the town of 
Westboro'. He had a family of 12 children. Among them were 
Silas, b. 1695, and Timothy, b. 1697, who were taken by the Indians, 



435 



in 1704, and carried captive to Canada. Their brother J^ahor, b. 
1(J!)D, was killed at the same time. Silas and Timothy were taken to 
Canada, where they married Indian wives, and had children by them. 
To Silas they gave the name of Tookanowras, and to Timothy the 
name of Oughtsorangoui^hton. The latter became the third of six 
Chiefs of the Cognawaga tribe. In that capacity he addressed a 
speech to Colonel, afterwards General Burgoyne, when employed in 
an expedition against Canada in the French war, in 1755. 

Timothy returned to Westboro', Sept., 1740, with an interpreter — 
himself having lost his mother-tongue — and visited the place, where 
he was captured, of which he had a clear remembrance, together with 
the circumstances under which he was taken. Nothing said or done 
could induce him to return to Westboro', or to civilized life. He re- 
turned to Canada, •where he and his brother Silas were living in 1790. 



Edward Rice m. May 25, 1702, Lydia Fairbanks. They resided 
in Marl., where he d. July 20, 1741, aged G9 years. His wid. d. Sept. 
13, 1755, aged 72. She was from Sherborn, and dau. of Eleazer, son 
of George and Mary — son of Jonathan, the New England progenitor, 
who d. at Dedham, 1078. Edward Rice and 4 of his children d. the 
same year. 

Martha, b. Oct. 20, 1703 ; m. 1st, Jona. Howard, and 2d, John Banister. 
Tahitha, b. March 0, 1700 ; m. Nathaniel Oakes ; r. in North. 
Lydia, b. March 22, 1708 ; ni. Jonathan Goodnow. 
Zeruiah, b. Feb. 4, 1710; d. Jan. 19, 1741. 

Gideon, b. April 5, 1712; m. Esther , and had Esther, b. May (>, 

1738. 
Persis, b. April 15, 1714 ; m. Thomas Goodnow, brother of Jonathan. 
Patience, b. Aug. 30, 1710; d. Jan. 9, 1741. 
Elizabeth, b. Oct. 2.5, 1718; m. Ezekiel Howe. 
Manj, h. Nov. 23, 1723; d. Jan. 5, 1741. 
Lucy, b. July 15, 1720 ; d. Jan. 14, 1741. 



Caleb Rice m. May 21, 1090, Mary Ward, dau. of Samuel and 
Sarah (Howe) Ward. He d. Jan. 5, 1739, aged 78. Siie d. Aug. 18, 
1742, in her OOtli year. He was a deacon of the church in Marl, 
from 1718 to the time of his death. 



and 



Martha, b. June 3, 1697. 

Mary, b. April 30, 1099 ; m. May 10, 1725, Abraham Beaman. 

Josiah, b. Dec, 30, 1700 ; m. 1720, Thankful Rice ; r. at West. 
North. 

\Jahez, b. Feb. 2, 1702 ; m. Hannah Brigham. 

\jyathan, b. Dec. 11, 1704 ; m. Elizabeth Wetherby. 

Rebecca, b. Dec. 10, 1700. 128 Sarah, b. March 13, 1709. 

Caleb, b. Dec. 13, 1712; grad. H. C. 1730, studied theology, was or- 
dained the first minister in Sturbridge, Sept. 29, 1730; m. Priscilla 
Payson, and d. in the ministerial office, Sept. 2, 1759, aged 40. 

Hepzibah, b. July 14, 1715. 131 Keziah, b. Feb. 10, 1717. 



Joseph Rice m. Nov. 10, 1708, Mercy Kerley, who d. Oct. 10, 1727, 
and he m. 2d, Dec. 4, 1728, Elizabeth Robinson, who d. Oct. 13, 1733, 
aged 48. He m. 3d, Oct, 18, 1734, Jane Corey, of Boston. He d. 
Dec. 3, 1745, and she d. 1702. He was a proprietor of New Marl- 
borough. 

t Jesse, b. Nov. 8, 1709 ; m. Beulah . 

Eleazer, b. Dec. 20, 1712; d. Feb. 14, 1713. 

5G 



436 



J34 
135 
13t) 
J 37 



17-58- 



58-138 
139 
140 
141 
143 



144 



17-GO- 



60-145 
14(i 
147 
148 

149 
150 
151 
152 



17-G2- 



19-72- 



72-153 
154 
]55 
156 
157 
158 
159 
IGO 



22-78- 



22-80- 



Mercy, K ^ .^ ,y., J probably d. younjj. 
Elizabeth, \ ^- ^'^^- ^"' "^^' } d. unm. May 29, 1752. 
Man/, b. July 30, 1718 ; m. March 24, 1741, Thaddeus Bond. 
Ruth, b. Sept. 1, 1721 ; m. 1738, Elisha Ward ; r. in West. 



Daniel Rice m. Feb. 12, 1713, Elizabeth Taylor. He settled in 
Marl., where his children were born. He resided in Shrewsbury the 
latter part of his life, where he probably d. 

Hannah, b. June 20, 1714 ; m. Ephraim Smith. 
yVilliam, b. Dec. 13, 1715 ; d. before 1742. 

David, b. Sept. 16, 1717 ; m. Love Mocre, of Rutland, and r. there. 
Stephen, b. June 27, 1720. 142 Bezaleel, b. Dec. 20, 1723. 

Abner, b. March 21, 1726; went to Vt., and commenced the settle- 
ment of Halifax, in 1761. 
\Jabez, b. April 7, 1728 ; m. Miriam Morse. 



Luke Rice m. Dec. 14, 1715, Rachel Stow, dau. of Samuel and 
Elizabeth Stow, of Marl. They resided in Marl, till about 1740, when* 
they moved to Shrews., where he became a leading man, and filled 
many important offices in the town. He d. July 4, 1754, in his 65th 
year. She was living 1771. 

Jlzubah, b. June 27, 1716 ; m. Thomas Baker; r. in West, and Shrews. 
Hezekiah, b. Feb. 18, 1718 ; m. Mary Taylor; r. in Shrews. 
Dinah, b. March 24, 1719 ; m. Abraham Eager; r. in Shrews. 
Rachel, b. March 22, 1723; m. Feb. 25, 1747, Jonas Stone; r. in 

Shrews. 
Abigail, b. Sept. 21, 1725 ; m. Benjamin Maynard ; r. in Shrews. 
Lydia, b, Oct, 24, 1728 ; d. June 10, 1740. 

Priscilla, b. June 5, 1731 ; m, 1753, Jotham Howe; r. in Shrews. 
Sarah, b. April 27, 1734 ; m. Nathaniel Whittemore ; r. in Shrews. 



Eleazer Rice m. Dec. 8, 1720, Thankful Fletcher, of Chelms- 
ford. They resided in Marl., where three of their children are re- 
corded ; the fourth probably d. at Boston, where the parent had 
removed. They had Bethiah, b. Jan. 23, 1722, and Thankful, Eleazer, 
and Mary. 



Gershom Rice m. Lydia Barrett, dau. of Thomas Barrett, of Marl. 
He d. Oct. 11, 1790, in his 81st year; she d. June 4, 1799, aged 87. 

Silas, b, March 31, 1739; d. Aug. 30, 1742. 
Iclutbod, b. June 20, 1741 ; d. Aug. 20, 1742. 
Solomon, b. July 17, 1743; d. Feb. 20, 17,53. 
Gershom, b. June 15, 1745 ; d. Feb. 20, 1753. 
^Thomas, b. Nov. 17, 1747; m. Abigail Hapgood. 
Jonathan, b. Jan. 30, 1749; d. Dec. 5, 1751. 
^Gershom, b. July 3, 1755 ; m. Susannah Howe. 

Solotnon, b. June 13, 1757; m. Mary Binney, of Marl., about 1782, 
and removed to Princeton, where he d. 1794. 

Zebi:b babel Rice m. Feb. 4, 1728, Elizabeth Barrett. He d. 
Aug. 27, 1775, in his 74th year. His wife d. May 24, 1770; she was 
dau. of Thomas Barrett, who d. at Marl. 1750, aged 78. Zerubbabcl 
Rice d. without issue. 



Matthias Rice m. Anna Bigelow, dau. of John and Jerusha (Gar- 
field) Bigelow. He and his wife were admitted to the church in Marl. 



437 



27-1 OG- 



lOG-lGl 

ig;} 

1G4 
IG5 
IGG 
167 



3a-lll- 



111- 



-1G8 
1G9 
170 
171 
17-2 
173 
174 

175 



50-125- 



125-1 7G 
177 

178 
179 



50-12G- 



12G-180 



51-132- 



132-181 
182 
183 

184 
185 



18G 
187 
188 
UK) 



1740. He subsequently moved to Northboro'; was one of the found- 
ers of the church there in 1745, and was one of the Deacons. He d. 
in 17G4, without issue. 



Abraham Rice m. Jan. 21, 1736, Persis Robinson. She d. Oct. 4, 
1755, aged 44. He m. 2d, Anna, wid. of Dea. Matthias Rice, of 
North. Abraham Rice d. Jan. 22, 178(>, in his 77tli year. His wid. 
Anna d. Dec. 4. 17!.>3, aged 81. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 12, 173G; m. Paul Brigham, and Col. Silas Bailey, 

Liicij, h. June 6, 1738; m. 1759, Paul Matthews; r. at Princeton. 

Joel', b. May 14, 1741 : d. unm. Feb. 4, 1818. 

Minam, b. Feb. 26, 1743 ; d. June 22, 1753. 

Per.sis, b. Jan. 27, 1745; m. Feb. 25, 1762, Joseph Howe. 

\ Peter, b. March 29, 1749 ; m. Levinah Howe. 

Samuel, b. Aug. 26, 1754 ; d. Oct. 1, 1755. 



Andrew Rice m. Doc. 3, 1734, Hannah Barnes. He was chosen 
Dea. of the church 1742, and d. Jan. 15, 1775, aged 72. His wid. 
Hannah d. Feb. 16, 1789, aged 77. 

Eber, b. Oct. 31, 1735; d. June 30, J744. 

Lifdia, b. Nov. (!, 1737 : d. June 27, 1749. 

jBenjamin, h. Jan. 4, 1740; m. May 22, 1764, Susanna Weeks. 

.4jm, b. June 27, 1742 ; m. Dec. 24, 1763, Daniel Ward ; r. in Marl. 

Phebe, b. Sept. 30, 1744; m. Dec. 5, 1762, William Williams, 

Met, b. April 23, 1747. 

jEiisha, b. April 12, 1751 ; m. April 3, 1771, Eunice Williams ; r. in 

Marl. 
John, b. Oct. 21, 1753; d. Aug. 11, 1776. 



Jabez Rice m. June 7, 1732, Hannah Brigham. He probably d. 
1783, aged 81. 

Hannah, b. March 9, 1737; d. March 30, 1751. 

\Culcb, b. May 7, 1740; grad. H. C. 1764; m. Mary Stone. 

\Jabcz, b. July 17, 1746; m. Alice Howe. 

\Noah, b. Sept. 10, 1751 ; grad. H. C. 1777; m. Sarah Cazneau, 



Nathan Rice m. Dec. 3, 1741, Elizabeth Witherbee. He d. May 
28, 1764, in his 60th year. 

\Jonah, b. Oct. 30, 1742 ; m. Phebe . 



Jesse Rice m. Beulah . He d. Aug. 12, 1771. She d. Feb. 

1798, aged 77. It is thought he had two wives, but there is no record 
of the marriages. His two-story house was burnt in March, 17(J9. 



Joseph, b. June 5, 1745 ; d. Sept. 24, 1746. 

Mary, b. Aug. 30, 1746 ; rn. Samuel Morse. 

Joseph, b. April 11. 1748; m. Aug. 19, 1773, Hannah Fairbanks. 

Eleazer, b. Oct. 2, 1749 ; m. Jan. 4, 1772, Elizabeth Darling. 

Jesse, b. May 25, 1751 ; grad. H. C. 1772. He settled in N. H., and 
on the breaking out of the Revolution, adhered to the king, and left 
the country. He was a physician, and settled in Yarmouth, N. S. 

Rutti, b. April 9, 175>5. 

Jlslibel, b. April 28, 1755; m. July 14, 1779, Persis Knights. 

mtiiam, b . 189 Elizabeth, b. May 31, 1761. 

Beulah, h. March 3, 1764. 



438 



58-144- 



144-191 



192 
193 
194 

195 

197 
198 

199 

201 
202 
203 



204 
205 



72-157- 



157-206 
207 
208 
209 
210 
211 
212 
213 



72-159- 



159-214 
215 
216 
217 

218 



106-166- 



166-219 
220 
221 



Jabez Rice m. Jan. 9, 1753, Miriam Morse. She d. Jan. 18, 1776, 
was dau. of Joseph and Abigail (Barnes) Morse. He m. 2d, April 2, 
1776, Elizabeth Burnett, who d. Nov. 27, 1812. He d. Nov. 4, 1809. 

Daniel, b. April 7, 1753; m. 1778, Lucy Darling. They resided in 

Marl, some years, when he removed to Northborough, and then to 

Whitestown, N. Y. 
MiHam, b. Nov. 8, 1754 ; d. July 31, 1771. 

\ William, b. Nov. 25, 1755 ; m, Nancy . 

Martin, b. March 17, 1757 ; he was in the six months' service from 

Petersham in 1775 ; m. Ruth Hastings, and resided in Petersham. 
Lydin, b. Aug. 8, 1758. 196 Stephen, b. June 8, 1762. 

P'hebe, b. July 2, 1764. 
Jabez, b. Nov. 14, 1766; m. 1816, Rebecca Hayden, wid. of Daniel 

Hayden, and had Letvis, b. Sept. 14, 1816. 

^aron, b. Nov. 11, 1768. 200 Betsey, b. Nov. 7, 1770. 

Jlnna, b. Nov. 17, 1772. 

John Hancock, ? v t « o? i77r . S ^- Oct. 28, 1785. 
rv ji /^ • / D. June /i/. 1//0 ; % 
Uorothy (putney, ^ I 

The above twins were b. ten days after the battle of Bunker Hill, 

and such was the spirit of patriotism, and such the devotion to the 

leaders of the great Revolutionary movement, that these children 

were honored with the name of John Hancock and his intended wife. 

Moses, b. Jan. 25, 1780; m. and had Aaron. 

Paul, b. Feb. 16, 1783. 



Thomas Rice m. Sept. 15, 1772, Abigail Hapgood, dau. of John 
and Abigail Hapgood. He d. Oct. 28, 1840, in his 93d year. His 
wife d. April 1828, aged 73. 

Lydia, b. May 26, 1778 ; m. John Carruth, of Northboro', and r. there. 
JVancy, b. Sept. 11, 1780 ; m. 1804, Abel Maynard ; he d. gored by an ox. 
Catliarine, b. July 9, 1783; m. 1806. Jotham Bartlett. 
\Jonathan, b. Nov. 30, 1786; m. 1809, Betty Brigham. 
\Levi, b. June 23, 1789 ; m. 1811, Lucinda Bigelow. 
Lucy, b. June 13, 1792; d. July 11, 1796. 
Willard, b. Sept. 7, 1794 ; m. 1815, Anna Barnes. 
Solomon, b. Sept. 3, 1799; m. 1836, Mary H. Perkins, who d. 1840, 
and he m. Nancy Cunningham. 



Gershom Rice m. Susanna Howe, dau. of Thaddeus Howe, and 
Lucinda his wife. They both d. April, 1837— he in his 82d year, and 
she aged 79. 

\Stephen, b. April 15, 1779; ni. April 4, 1804, Anna Morse. 
^Edward, b. March 16, 1784 ; m. Nov. 26, 1809, Susanna Felton. 
Susanna, b. Dec. 5, 1787; m. Feb. 23, 1809, Ivory Bigelow. 
Mary, b. March 3, 1791 ; m. May 21, 1817, Luke Fosgate, of Berlin. 

They have joined the Shakers. 
Henry, b. June 23, 1794 ; m. 1829, Mary W. Lee, of Concord, and 

settled in Lincoln, where he d. about 1858. 



Peter Rice m. Jan. 2, 1772, Levina Howe, dau. of Joseph and 
Grace Howe. She d. Dec. 23, 1812, aged 61, and he d. Dec. 9, 1826, 
aged 78. 

Matthias, b. April 20, 1773 ; d. unm. at Orange, Vt., May 9, 1796. 
Lucy, b. Dec. 21, 1774 ; m. Col. Ephraim Brigham, and d. 1814. 
]Eli, b. Oct. 8, 1777; m. Oct. 29, 1799, Lucy Brigham. 



439 



111-170- 



170-222 
223 
224 
225 
22(] 
227 
228 

111-174- 



174-229 

230 
231 

125-177- 



177-232 
2:i3 
234 
235 

125-178- 



178-236 
238 
239 
240 
241 



125-179- 



179-242 
243 
244 
245 

246 
247 

248 
249 
250 



Benjamin Rice m. May 22, 1764, Susanna Weeks, dan. of Col. 
Jolin and Dinah Weeks. He d. 1811, aged 70, and she d. Feb. 17, 
1826, aged 82. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 18, 1765; m. Roger Phelps. 

Mary, b. April 8, 1767 ; m. 1786, Lewis Brigham, and d. June 15, 1797. 

Phe'be, b. Oct. 23, 1768; m. 1790, Samuel Williams, and d. 1794. 

SlepJmi, b. Dec. 27, 1769; d. April 19, 1788. 

Susanna, b. Dec. 28, 1771 ; d. num. 

\Benjamin, b. July 8, 1774; m. July 21, 1803, Persis Hapgood. 

John, b. Nov. 29, 1783 ; d. April 20, 1788. 



Elisha Rice m. April 3, 1771, Eunice Williams; she d. Aug. 11, 
1776, aged 26. He survived her only twelve days, and d. Aug. 23, 
1776, aged 26. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 29, 1771 ; ni. Feb. 16, 1792, John Bond. 
Elisha, b. June 16, 1773; m. Nov. 24, 1795, Lucy Boyd. 
Eber, b. July 2, 1775 ; m. May 25, 1801, oarali Barnes, 



Caleb Rice m. Mary Stone, of Southborough. He grad. at H. 
Coll. 1764, and d. Dec. 28, 1776, in his 37th year. His wid. d. March 
27, 1777, in her 35th. She was dau. of Rev. Nathan Stone, the first 
minister of Southboro', who grad. at H. Coll. 1726 ; ordained at South- 
borough, Oct. 24, 1730, and d. May 31, 1781. 

Caleb, b. July 9, 1771 ; m. 1796, Miriam Bartlett, r. Lunenburg, Vt. 
JVathan, b. Dec. 27, 1772 ; d. unm. on a voyage to Madeira, 1797. 
Ephraim B., b. Jan 10, 1774; m. Elizabeth Howe, r. Lunenburg, Vt. 
Solomon, b. May 13, 1775 ; m. Miss Whitney, r. Brighton. 



Jabez Rice m. June 27, 1776, Alice Howe. He d. Nov. 3, 1809, 
in his 64th year. His wid. Alice m. April 30, 1817, Simon Goddard, 
of Phillipston. 

Hannah, b. Aug. 5, 1777. 237 Lydia, b. April 9, 1779 ; d. 1782. 

Jlaron, b. May 30, 1782; d. Oct. 1782. 
SaUij, b. May 14, 1784 ; ni. March 5, 1804, Martin Rice. 
Jabez, b. Aug. 24, 1786; m. 1811, Betsey Stevens, dau. of Daniel. 
Mel, b. June 19, 1791 ; m. June 13, 1814, Betsey Hunt, of Northboro'. 
She d. May 28, 1825. 



Noah Rice, m. 1778, Sarah Cazncau, of Boston, who d. May 15, 
1781, aged 28. He m. 2d, Mrs. Hannah (Palfrey) Cole, of Boston. 
He d. Oct. 1, 1820, in his 70th year, and she d. Sept. 17, 1826, aged 
75. He was a graduate of H. Coll. 

miliam C, b. Oct. 26, 1779 ; d. Jan. 19, 1780. 

William C, b. Jan. 9, 1781; d. April 11, 1781. 

Henry, b. Jan. 15, 1786; m. 181(5, Maria Burroughs; r. in Boston. 

Sarah C, b. Nov. 25, 1787 ; m. Heman Seaver — well known in Marl. 

by the appellation of ^'Master Seaver." 
Sophia, b. April 27, 1789. 
William P., b. Nov. 21, 1790; went to Cincinnati, O., and d. there, 

1843. 
Rnfus, b. Jan. 27, 1793 ; m. L. A. Mutzenbeeker ; r. in Worcester. 
Elizabeth C, b. Dec. 13, 1794; d. Nov. 27, 1806. 
Hannah, b. Sept. 3, 1796 ; was living unm. 1854. 



440 



126-180- 



180-251 



252 
253 
254 

255 

256 
258 
259 
260 
261 



144-193- 
157-209- 



J57-210- 



159-214- 



159-215- 



166-221- 



221-262 

263 
264 
265 
266 
267 
268 



Jonah Rice m. Phebe 



He d. June 12, 1827, in his 85th year. 



JVatha7i, b. Oct. 8, 1775; m. Arathusa Moore, of Bolton. They had 
Matlhias, b. July 1, 1799; Emili/, b. April 25, 1801; Maline, b. 
April 5, 1804, d. 1831; Charles, b. 1806; Jllbert ; Louisa; Are- 
thusa ; JVuthan ; Dana ; Peter, b. April 25, 1817 ; drowned on his 
birthday, April 25, 1838. 

Mel, b. April 23, 1777; d. Sept. 10, 1790. 

Elizabeth, b. April 18, 1779 ; in. John Hunting, and d. 1832. 

Martin, b. March 29, 1781; m. March 5, 1804, Sally Rice. They 
had 11 children b. between 1804 and 1825. He d. 1844. 

Edward, b. Feb. 22, 1783 ; m. 1817, Lydia Gates, and d. 1859, with- 
out issue. 

Lydia, b. Jan. 28, 1785. 257 Ezekiel, b. Dec. 16, 1786 ; d. 1789. 

Phebe, b. Feb. 3, 1789. 

Hervey, b. March 25, 1791 ; m. Thusa . 

Luke, b. June 20, 1793; ni. Anna Gleason, and d. Jan. 20, 1853. 

Matthias, b. April 3, 1795; d. May 10, 1796. 



William Rice m. Nancy . They had John, b. March 5, 

1782 ; Jonathan, b. May 14, 1783 ; Betsey, h. July 27, 1785. 



Jonathan Rick m. March 25, 1809, Betsey Brigham, dau. of 
Capt. Aaron Brigham, and d. 1860. They had Abigail, b. July 21, 
1810, m. John F. Rice; Eli, b. April 24, 1812; Thomas, b. June 12, 
1814; Lucij, b. Aug. 20, 1816; Aaron B., b. Feb. 14, 1819; Caroline 
E., b. Feb. 8, 1821 ; Surah Ann, b. July 11, 1823 ; Joseph A., b. Jan. 16, 
1826 ; William, b. Aug. 6, 1828 ; Charlotte B., b. March 6, 1834. 



Levi Rice m. Sept. 15, 1811, Lucinda Bigelow, dau. of Gershom. 
She d. July 17, 1850, aged 59. They had 8 children, b. between 
1817 and 1832. 



Stephen Rice m. April 4, 1804, Anna Morse, dau. of Francis 
Morse. They had Louisa, b. March 6, 1805, d. unm. Nov. 28, 1839 ; 
John R, b. Jan. 7, 1809, ni. Nov. 15, 1832, Abigail Rice, dau. of 
Jonathan; Mary Ann, b. Jan. 22, 1813, d. Jan. 17, 1836; Jane, b. 
March 19, 1819, m. 1840, Warren T. Bush, r. at North. 



Edward Rice m. Nov. 26, 1809, Susanna Felton, dau. of Joel 
Felton. They had Sally, b. Oct. 5, 1810 ; Emerson, b. March 9, 1812 ; 
Edward G. and Susan B., twins, b. Jan. 23, 1814 ; Mary,h. March 26, 
1816; George E., b. May 29, 1818. 



Eli Rice m. Oct. 29, 1799, Lucy Brigham, dau. of Winslow and 
Elizabeth Brigham. He d. May 4, 1851, aged 73. She d. Nov., 
1850, in her 72d year. He was captain of a company, deacon of the 
West Church, a Justice of the Peace, and Representative to the 
General Court. 

Levina, b. Oct. 19, 1800; m. 1817, Otis Russell, and had 17 children. 
Matthias, b. July 10, 1802; m. Martha Brigham. She r. at Fitchburg. 
Lucy B., b. April 2, 1804 ; d. Jan. 10, 1805. 
Emihi, b. Nov, 10, 1806; m. Edward Phelps. 
Betsey, b. Oct. 7, 1808; d. Aug. 27, 1819. 
Lucy, b. Jan. 16, 1811 ; d. Feb. 11, 1811. 

Sophronia, b. Feb. 1, 1813; m. Edward Phelps, husband of her de- 
ceased sister. 



441 



Peter, b. March 10, 1815 ; d. unm. Feb. 26, 1841. 

Laura .•?., b. April 27, 1817 ; ni. William Ilersey. 

Sophia, b. March 5, 1819; in. 18r)l, Dennis Wetherbee. 

H'inslow B., b. May 24, 1821 ; m. Nov. 23, 1842, Emeline L. Stow, 

and moved to Ohio. 
Abraham h'., b. May 7, 1823 ; m. 1844, Abby W. Albee. 



Benjamin Rice grad. H. C, 179() ; in. July 21, 1803, Persia Ilap- 
jrood. He d. Sept. 24, 1833, in his COth year. She d. Jan. 4, 1821. 
She was dan. of Dea. Jonathan Ilapgood. Benjamin Rice was deacon 
of the West Church, and a Magistrate, 

Persis, b. Jan. 5, 1804; m. as his 2d wife. Rev. Seth Alden, who grad. 
at Brown University 1814, and settled at Marl., 1819. He was 
afterward installed at West Brookfield, and subsequently at Lincoln. 
While officiating at Westborough on the Lord's Day, Nov. 13, 
1853, and while reading his first hymn in the afternoon service, he 
fell and instantly expired, in the (iOth year of his age. He was a 
lineal descendant of John jlldcn, who came over in the MayHower, 
1G20, and who m. Priscilla Mullens — the lady whose hand was 
sought by Capt. Miles Standish, the courtship of whom is immortal- 
ized by the Poet Longfellow. 

Susanna ff., b. Aug. Hi, 1805; m. 1827, Lewis Bigelow. 

Benjamin P., b. July 7, 1808 ; m. Deborah Carrico. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec, 28, 1810. 

George, b. June 4. 1813 ; d. at Worcester, June 30, 1847. 

John, b. Nov. 10, 1815. 280 Mary C, b. Aug. 21, 1818. 



William Rice, supposed to be a descendant of this family, came 
to Marl, from Lynn, 1785, and in. the following year, Lydia Sawin, 
dau. of Munning. They had 1st, Otis, b. June 5, 1787, who in. 
Lucretia Eager, and had William, Hennj, Mollis, Charles, Jonathan, 
and two dau. ; 2d, Phebe S., b. April 14, 1789, in. Rev. Robert L. 
Killam, and had three children. 

As the Rice family have been very numerous, and have resided in 
Sud., South., West , North., and other neighboring towns, there will 
of course be some of the name from time to time resident in Marl., 
who do not belong to the regular families in the town. These may 
not be found here. For a full genealogy of the Rice family, see the 
Book prepared by A. J. Ward, Esq., to which I am indebted for much 
information concerning this family. 



RIPLEY. — George Ripley, by wife Sarah, had Christian, b. Feb. 
27, 1689; William, b. July 21, 1G91. 



ROBINSON.— Jeremiah Robinson m. Oct. 14, 1746, Eunice 
Amsden, and had Thomas, b. Oct. 27, 1748; Eunice, b. Oct. 13, J750; 
Bradbun/, b. Aug. 8, 1752; Cain, b. Sept. 15, 1754; Lydia, b. Aug. 
14, 1757; Winthrop, b. July 23, 1760, d. young; Winthrop, b. Aug. 
12, 1763. 



Oliver Robinson, by wife Elizabeth, had Dana, b. Dec. 2, 1792. 



RUDDOCK. — John P^uddock, of Sudbury, was made freeman 
1640. He was one of the original proprietors of Marl, and a leading 
man among them. lie was one of the committee chosen in 1656, "to 
put the affiiirs of ye sd. new Plantation in an orderly way." He was 
also the first clerk of the proprietors and of the town ; the latter office 
he held twelve or fifteen years. He was also one of the selectmen, a 



442 



number of years, a deacon of the church, and in all respects an influ- 
ential and controlling member of society. We have no record of any 
family but his wives. He was thrice married ; but we have records 
of their deatlis only. Dorothy, his first wife, d. May 9, 108(5; he 
then m. Jane Brimsmead, a sister of his clergyman, who d. Feb. U, 
l(i88; he m. 3d, Rebecca, who d. his wid. Dec. 25, l(J94. He d. Jan. 
28, 1(193. He built one of the first frame-houses in the place, situated 
on the spot or near where the widow Joseph Howe now resides. 



RUGG. — Nathaniel Rugg, by wife Hannah, had Reuhamah, h, 
March 31, 1769. 

Jonathan Rugg, by wife Sarah Newton, had Bathsheba,h. Oct. 20, 
1703. He moved to Framingham. Both Jonathan and Nathaniel 
were from Lan. 



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THE HUSSELL FAMILY. 

Oliver Russell's name appears on the roll of Capt. Daniel 
Barnes's Company, whicli marched to Cambridge, April 19, 1775; it 
also appears on the roll of the eight-months' men of that year. He m. 
Oct. 29, 1778, Betty Howe. He d. Oct. 28, 1820. 

Abraham, b. March 31, 1779. 

Betsey, b. Oct. 10, 1780 ; m. Oct. 5, 1797, Willard Brigham. 

Otis,' h. April 24, 1793; ni. April 21, 1817, Levina Rice, and had 

seventeen children. 
Lydia, b. Dec. 23, 1795; m. Aug. 5, 1821, Ashbel Brigham. 
Relief, b. Oct. 7, 1797 ; m. June 28, 1824, Lovett Fay. 
Joh7i, b. June 25, 1799. 8 Oliver, b. April 24, 1801. 



Nathaniel P. Russell m. April 30, 1780, Patty Williams. She 
d. April 8, 1793, and he m. 1794, Patience Robinson. He d. March 
17, 1812. He came to Marlborough from Bolton. 



Luaj, b. Nov. 29, 1780. 

.SV/%, b. Dec. 2, 178v> ; d. 1797, at Watertown. 

Solomon, b. Feb. 27, 1780. 5 Patty, b. March 30, 1788. 

miliam, b. Nov. 4, 1790. 7 Prentice, b. June 7, 1795. 

Patience, b. Feb. 28, 1797. 



SAMPSON. — John Sampson, by his wife Abigail, had Benjamin, 
b. Nov. 27. 1727; Rachel, b. 1729; Huldah, b. 1731 ; Jonatluin, b. 
Oct. 25, 1733. 



THE SAWIN FAMILY. 

The Sawins of Marl, were undoubtedly the descendants of John 
Sawin, of Watertown, who was made freeman, 1653. He m. 1st, Abi- 
gail Manning, and 2d, Judith Peirce, and had John; Manning, b. 
1055; and Thomas, h. 1657. John settled in Natick, Thomas in 
Sherborn, and Munning in Watertown. From one of these families 
the Marl, branch descended. The name Munning, among other 
things, shows the connection. 



Munning Sawin m. Rebecca Munroe, of Weston, dau. of Benja- 
min, and grand dau. of William Munroe, the ancestor of all the Mun- 



443 



roes in this region, May 12, 1746. He d. June 28, 1807, aged 87; 
and hence was born 1720. She d. May 22, 1805. He was a member 
of Capt. Abraham Williams's Co., organized in 1757, in view of the 
dangers from the French and Indians. He was for many years a 
keeper of a public house in Marl. Capt. Cyprian Howe was also an 
Innholder at the same time. Though their houses were in some degree 
rivals, they were not probably entirely antagonistic. I well remember 
an old bacchanalian ballad with the inspiring chorus : — 

" Uncle Cyp makes the flip, 
And Munning makes the toddy, O." 

\Benjamin, b. Aug. 8, 1748 ; m. Dec. 6, 1772, Martha Howe. 
Silas, b. May 25, 17.52 ; d. May 24, 1779. 
jJohn, b. June 21, 1754; m. Feb. 24, 1773, Hannah Moore. 
Phebe, b. May 10, 175i). 6 Betty, b. Jan. 5, 17(33. 

Lydia, b. Dec. 10, 1764 ; m. 1786, William Rice, late from Lynn. 



Benjamin Sawin m. Dec. 6, 1772, Martha Howe, dau. of Cyprian 
Howe. 

William, b. April 13, 1773; m. Dec. 6, 1795, Betsey Temple. 
Dorothy, b. March 7, 1775; m. 1793, Thomas Wood. 
Thomas, b. July 26, 1777. 11 Phebe, b. Aug. 15, 1779. 

Beiijamiji, b. July 7, 1781. 13 Martha, b. July 28, 178.3. 

Jabez, b. Jan. 13, 1786. 15 Henry, b. March 17, 1788. 



John Sawin m. Feb. 24, 1773, Hannah Moore. She d. June 20, 
1808, and he m. Dec. 14, 1808, Elizabeth Cutting. He commanded a 
company of militia. He d. June 12, 1832, aged 78. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 30, 1773. 

John, b. Sept. 9, 1775 ; m. 1794, Lucy Stratton. 

Moses, b. April 19, 1777. 19 Silas, b. June 20, 1779. 

Jonathan, b. Feb. 22, 1782; m. 1801, Martha Fay, of Southboro', and 
had Harriot, b. July 27, 1801, m. Joseph Bigelow; JVealthy C, b. 
July 20, 1803, m. Marshall Jones; George, b. , resides in Bos- 
ton ; Francis, b. , is living with his 4th wife. 



THE SAWYER FAMILY. 

The Sawyers of Marl, probably came from Lancaster, where Thomas 
Sawyer was found, 1647, and had, according to Farmer, by his wife 
Mary, Thomas, Ephraim, Joshua, J(tmes, Caleb, JVatlianiel, and several 
daughters. 

Thomas Sawyer, of Lancaster, m. Mary . 



^Thomas, b. 
jJames, b. — 



— ; m. Hannah 
; m. Mary 



Thomas Sawyer m. Hannah 



Hannah, b. May 23, 1675. 



5 William, b. Feb. 1679. 



James Sawyer m. Mary . She d. March 20, 1709. He was 

one of the proprietors of the Ockoocangansett Plantation in 1693. 

Ephraim, b. Dec. 1678 ; m. July 4, 1700, Elizabeth George. 
James, k July 12, 1686. 8 Mary, b. Sept. 17, 1696. 

Benjamin, b. Feb. 11, 1698. 
57 



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Ephraim Sawier m. July 4, 1700, Elizabeth George, and had 
Joshua, h. Jan. 19, 1702 ; Mary, b. Dec. 13, 1704; Jacob, h. Dec. 14, 
1706 ; James, b. April 14, ]707. 



SEAVER.— Heman Seaver, long a "School Master" in Marl., 
m. 1794, Elizabeth Weeks, and had Aaron }V., b. 1797; J^orman, b. 
1802. He moved to Canada, was there during the war of 1812, 
afterwards returned to Marl. ; m. 181(), Sarah C. Rice, by whom he 
had several ciiildren. He d. Dec. 19, 1835. 



THE SIIATTUCK FAI^IILY. 

William Shattuck of Watertown, b. in England, 1621, m'. about 
1642, and by his wife Susanna, had several children. 

John, b. Feb. 11, 1647 ; m. June 20, 1664, Ruth Whitney. 

William, b. Sept. 11, 1670; m. in Watertown, March 19, 1688, Han- 
nah Underwood, and settled in Groton ; and ni. 2d, Deliverance 
Pease. He had among other children, 



John Shattuck, b. in Groton, 1696; m. Dec. 24, 1716, Silence 
Allen. She d. and he m. Mrs. Mary Newton, of Southburo'. He 
settled first in Shrewsbury, but exchanged places with John Bigelow 
in 1723, came to Marl, and settled on " the J\rm." 



Abigail, b. Oct. 27, 1717. 

\John, b. Feb. 7, 1722 ; m. Nov. 27, 1744, Abigail Morse. 

Thomas, b. March 3, 1724 ; m. Elizabeth Parminter. 

Samuel, b. May 22, 1726. 

Ephraim, b. April 8, 1728; m. Elizabeth Johnson. 

Silas, b. Aug. 21, 1738 ; m. Sarah Jackson. 



John Shattuck m. Nov. 27, 1744, Abigail Morse. 

Joseph, b. March 5, 1745; m. May 25, 1770, Abigail Fairbanks. 
Lucy, b. April 12, 1747. 13 Thnddeus, b. June 19, 1752. 

Susanna, b. May 2, 1755. 15 John, b. Aug. 22, 1758. 

Anna, b. Oct. 30, 1760. 17 Chloc, b. Nov. 16, 1764. 



THE SHERMAN FAMILY. 

Capt. John Sherman, b. in Dedham, Essex Co., England, 1613, 
came to America, 1634, and settled in Watertown. He was admitted 
freeman, May 17, 1637 ; was selectman many times from l(i37 to 1680 ; 
town Clerk, 1648, and often afterwards ; representative, 1651, '53 and 
'63. He m. Martha Porter, dau. of Roger and Grace Porter, and d. 
Jan. 25, 1691. She d. Feb. 7, 1701. 

John, b. Nov. 2, 1638 ; was killed in the Narragansett war. 
Martha, b. Feb. 21, 1641 ; m. Sept. 26, 16(51, Francis Bowman. 
Mary, b. March 25, 1643; m. Jan. 18, 1667, Timothy Hawkins. 
Sarah, b. Jan. 17, 1648 ; d. 1667. 6 Elizabeth, b. March 15, 1649. 
\ Joseph, b. May 14, 1650. 8 Grace, b. Dec. 20, 1653 ; d. unm. 



445 



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JosEPH Sherman m. in Wat. Nov. 18, 1G73, Elizabeth Winship, 
dau. of Lieut. Edward Winship, of Cambridge. He was representa- 
tive, 1702, '3, '4, '5 ; often a selectman and assessor. 



jJohn, h. Jan. 11, 1075; m. Mary . 

Edward, b. Sept. 2, 1()77; m. Oct. 10, 1700, Sarah Parkhurst. 

Joseph, b. Feb. 8, 1080. 12 Samud, b. Nov. 28, 1082. 

Jonathan, b. Feb. 24, 1084. 14 Ephraim, b. March 1(>, l(i85. 

Eihahdh, b. July 15, l(i87. 

Martha, b. Sept. 1, 1089; m. Rev. Benjamin Shattuck. 

mUiam, b. June 28, 1(>!»2. 18 Sarah, b. June 2, 1094. 

JValhaniel, b. Sept. 19, 1096; m. 172(), Mnry Livermore. 



John Sherman m. about 1098, Mary . He was in Marl, about 

the beginning of the century, and in 1711 was assigned to Joseph 
Morse's garrison; d. Nov. 11, 1756. 

Marif, b. Aug. 16, 1099. 

Joseph, b. March 2.5, 1703; m. Sarah Perrum ; lived in Shrews. 

John, b. Dec. 31, 1705 ; d. April 15, 1711. 

Grace, b. Sept. 13, 1707; m. 1741, Thomas Carr, of Sudbury. 

Ephraim, b. Mtirch 31, 1710 ; settled in Grafton ; m. Thankful Temple. 

John, b. Feb. 17, 1713. 

Elizabeth, b. Oct. 15, ; m. 17.30, Thomas' Axtell, of Grafton. 

\Samucl, b. May 12, 1718; m. Lydia . 



Samuel Sherman m. Lydia . She d. Aug. 1, 1756, and he m. 

about 1759, Hepzibah . He d. April 20, 1784. 

Samuel, b. Oct. 25, 1743 ; m. 1764, Lucy Fay. 

Jason, b. Sept. 13, 1745. 

\Mner, b. May 0, 1748; m. Aug. 21, 1709, Abigail Maynard. - 

^Isaac, b. March 25, 1751 ; m. May 7, 1770, Hannah Parker, who d. 

1777. 
Jedulhan, b. July 15, 17.53. 

Hepzibah, b. May 10, 1700; m. March 4, 1779, Joseph Wait. 
JMoses, b. June 28, 1701; m. Jan. 11, 1787, Levina Howe, dau. of 

Thaddeus. He d. June 28, 1833, aged 72. She d. July 17, 1851, 

aged 84. 
Daniel, b. Jan. 24, 1703 ; m. Mar. 29, 1785, Anna Knight, and d. 1780. 
Solomon, b. Aug. 25, 1704. 
fwl/iVo/i, b. Sept. 19, 1706 ; m. 1st, Susanna D. Frost, and 2d, Lydia 

Cogswell. 



Abner Sherman m. Aug. 21, 1709, Abigail Maynard. 
Abner, b. Dec. 27, 1709. 39 JVabby, b. Nov. 20, 1771. 



Isaac Sherman m. May 7, 1776, Hannah Parker, who d. 1777, 
aged 22, and he m. Hannah Fairbanks. 



Hannah, b. Oct. 2, 1778. 
JfiUiam, b. March 20, 1782. 



41 John, b. April 29, 1780. 



MiCAH Sherman m. Susanna D. Frost. She d. Jan. 10, 1811, and 
he m. June 23, 1813, Lydia Cogswell. He d. Dec. 8, 1810; and she 
m. 1823, Col. Joseph Davis, of Northborough. Micah Sherman was a 
prominent citizen, and was a justice of the peace. 



446 



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45 

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Snsanna F., b. Aug. 27, 1800. 
Jllmira L., b. Dec. 14, 1803. 
Dana, b. July 5, 1807. 
Charlotte Jinn, b. March 15, 1809. 



44 Jane D., b. April 7, 1802. 
46 Sidney, b. July 23, 1805. 



THE SMITH FAMILY. 

To undertake to classify the Smiths of Marl., or almost any other 
town, would be a hopeless task ; and though you might find John 
Smith in any place, the idea of proving his identity would never enter 
into the head of any experienced genealogist. I will, however, bring 
them into groups as well as I may, without the attempt to trace their 
origin or descent. 



Nathaniel Smith m. Keziah 



He d. March 20, 1782. 



Damaris, b. Aug. 1, 1751; m. Jan. 11, 1774, David Clough. 
Kate, b. Jan. 20, 1753; m. 1774, Jeduthan Alexander. 
\ Jonas, b. Dec. 30, 1754 ; m. June 26, 1777, Susanna Brown. 
Pattee, b. Jan. 16, 1757 ; m. 1780, Samuel Howe. 
Eunice, b. April 30, 1762 ; m. 1785, William Smith. 



Jonas Smith m. June 26, 1777, Susanna Brown, of Stow. 

Susanna, b. Nov. 22, 1778. 8 Samuel, b. April 9, 1782. 

Betsey, b. March 24, 1785 ; m. March 18, 1804, Ezekiel Bruce. 
Sophia, b. Jan. 28, 1796 ; m. 1813, Peter Whitcomb. 
MaHin, b. March 14, 1799. 12 ^ahby, b. June 18, 1801. 



t-. 



5- 8 
10 



John Smith, b. Feb. 19, 1729 ; m. Feb. 19, 1764, Rebecca Bruce, 
b. May 8, 1732. 

William, b. May 20, 1764 ; m. 1785, Eunice Smith. 
Mai-y, b. March 17, 1766 ; m. July 23, 1788, Jacob Jewell. 
Jeduthan, b. March 3, 1768; m. May 18, 1793, Christian Barnes. 
\Calvin, b. May 1, 1770; m. Dec. 29, 1803, Ruth H. Maynard. 
\David, b. May 17, 1772; m. Sept. 18, 1797, Abigail Bruce. 
Gideon, b. Aug. 16, 1774 ; d. Jan. 14, 1812. 



Calvin Smith m. Dec. 29, 1803, Ruth H. Maynard. 



Calvin, b. Aug. 3, 1804. 
Caroline, b. Sept. 7, 1807. 



9 Rebecca, b. Jan. 30, 1806. 
11 Susanna, b. April 25, 1809. 



David Smith m. Sept. 18, 1797, Abigail Bruce, and had Martin, 
b. Jan. 7, 1799 ; David, b. Aug. 5, 1801 ; Oliver, b. Oct. 3, 1803. 

There were other Smiths in town, the classification of whom is 
impossible from the Records. 



Rev. Aaron Smith, by his wife Martha, had Martha, b. Aug. 22, 
1746, and Anne, b. same day (twins.) 



Jonathan Smith m. Jan. 18, 1724, Sarah Jewell, of Stow, and 
had Ralph, b. Oct. 17, 1724, and Merodackbaladin, b. March 20, 1728 ; 
and having, it is presumed, exhausted their ingenuity for names, have 
given us no further record. 



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John Smith, by wife Experience, had Abraham, b. April 13, 1722, 
and Lucy, b. Dec. 3, 172U. 



Nathan Smith, by wife Susanna, had Lydia, b. Sept. 2, 1763, m. 
1780, Abijah Hemenway; JYathan, b. Dec. 3, 1765. 



SNOW. — Ebenezer S.now rn. Oct. 11, 1727, Experience Joslin, 
and had Lucy, b. Aug. 27, 1728 ; Ebenezer, b. 1730, d. young ; Eben- 
ezer, b. May 10, 1732. 



John Snow, by wife Abigail, had John, b. Nov. 25, 1729. 



SOUTHER. — Moses Souther m. Lucy Barnes, and had Moses, 
b. Oct. 12, 1780; Joseph Jackson, b. April 16, 1788; Aaron, b. Jan. 
25, 1789. 



STANLY.— MicAH Stanly, by wife Parthiaus, had Relief, b. July 
30, 1763. 



THE STEVENS FAMILY. 

Col. Thomas Stevens, of Devonshire, England, moved to London, 
and was the father of William and other children. 



William Stevens m. and had six children ; three sons, and 
three dau., four of whom came to America. 



\Thoinas, b. in London, and d. in Stow. 
\Cyprian, b. in London; m. Mary Willard. 
\Richard, b. in London. 
Mary, b. in London ; m. in Ipswich, Capt. Whipple. 



Thomas Stevens came to New England with Capt. Green, about 
1660, and took up his abode in Charlestown. lie was an iron monger, 
and a blacksmith, and had a grant of land from Sudbury, on condition 
that he should do their smith ivork for them. lie afterwards moved 
from Sudbury to Stow, where he had a family of children, and where 
he died. 



Cyprian Stevens came to this country in company with his 
brother, Thomas, about 1660, He m. June 22, 1671, Mary, dau. of 
Maj, Simon Willard, of Lancaster, where he resided and had a family 
of children, some of whom afterwards came to Marlboro'. 

Mary, b. Nov. 22, 1772 ; m. Samuel Wright, Esq., of Sudbury. 

Dorothy, b. . 

jSimon, b. ; m. 1st, 1701, Mary Wilder, and 2d, Mrs. Mary Martin. 

Phinehas, b. . 

Elizabeth, b. ; m. Capt. Ephraim Wilder, of Lancaster. 



Richard Stevens m. in England, and came to America later than 
his brothers, and probably settled in Ipswich, where his sister, Mary, 
resided. He juried his wife and one daughter theTe^ wlien, it is said, 
■ 44& returned to England, leaving his son Samuel in this country. 

\Samuel, b. 1681 ; m. March 29, 1710, Thankful Stow, of Marlboro'. 



448 



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Simon Stevens m. 1st, 1701, Mary Wilder, of Lancaster, who d. 
and he m. 2d, Mrs. Mary (Gove) Martin, wid. of Thomas Martin ; she 
d. March 21, 1775, aged 85 years and 2 months. An anecdote of 
some interest is told of the ancestry of his second wife, not improbable 
in itself, and as far as the records touch upon the subject, they rather 
confirm it. The tradition is, that sometime during the 17th century, 
as a vessel was leaving England for this country, two young women 
went on board to take leave of their friends, and were invited to 
take some cake and wine ; and before they were aware of it, the 
vessel was on its way to New England. One of these young women, 
Mary Holmes, m. a Mr. Gove. Their dau. Mary, m. Jan. 30, 1710, 
Thomas Martin. After the death of her husband in 1729, Mary 
(Gove) Martin m. Simon Stevens, and hence the name Gove, has 
been retained in that branch of the Stevens family. 

Simon Stevens was in Marl, at the time of his m., (1701,) and had 
several children b. in the place ; he afterwards moved to Plainfield, 
Ct., where he may have d. His wid. Returned, and spent her last 
days in Marlborough. The record of the family is very imperfect. 



Ci/prian, bap. in Marl. Oct. 14, 1705. 

Mary, bap. in Marl. Oct. 14, 1705. 

Lucy, by 2d wife, b. Nov. 8, 1733; ni. June 16, 1756, Joel Barnard. 



29 



Samuel Stevens m. March 29, 1710, Thankful Stow, dau. of 
Samuel and Elizabeth, of Marl. She was born Oct. 8, 1687, and d, 
July 13, 1763, aged 76. He d. Dec. 6, 1761. They united with 
Rev. Mr. Breck's church, March 4, 1720 ; subsequently he was elect- 
ed one of the deacons. He was a prominent citizen in the town. 
The exact date of his coming into the place cannot be fixed. The 
first mention of him, that I have been able to find, is in 1708, when 
he exchanged lands with David Church. Dea. Stevens's will, dated 
Oct. 27, 1753, and proved Jan. 4, 1762, mentions wife Thankful, son 
Samuel, and dau. Sarah Hemenway, Mary Haywood, Elizabeth Bailey, 
Anna Woods, and Thankful. He resided on the place where Capt. 
Aaron Stevens now resides. 

Elizabeth, b. March 3, 1712; d. March 11, 1712. 

Sarah, b. Sept. 27, 1713 ; m. Hemenway. 

Marij, b. May 18, 1716; m. June 3, 1739, Samuel Haywood, Acton. 
\Samucl, b. July 28, 1718 ; m. June 23, 1742, Lucy Barnes. 
Elizabeth, b. May 22, 1721 ; m. July 21, 1748, Barnabas Bailey. 
Jlnna, b. Jan. 9, 1724 ; m. Nov. 5, 1747, James Woods. 
Benjamin, b. June 29, 1726; d. Dec. 29, 1751. 
TImnkful, b. Aug. 18, 1728; m. Feb. 1, 1759, Francis Weeks ? 



Samuel Stevens m. June 23, 1742, Lucy Barnes, b. Jan. 2, 1726, 
dau. of Daniel and Zeruiah (Eager) Barnes. She d. Nov. 23, 1783, 
aged 57, and he d. 1789, aged 71. 

Jonas, b. Nov. 17, 1743; d. Feb. 15, 1820, unm. 
\Daniel, b. May 7, 1746 ; he was thrice married. 
\Francis, b, Feb. 8, 1749 ; m. Feb. 20, 1776, Elizabeth Brigham, and 

d. 1829. 
Lucy, b. Jan. 21, 1752 ; m. Dec. 27, 1770, Thaddeus Warren. 
Benjamin, b. Feb. 18, 1755 ; m. April 25, 1780, Lucy Brigham, and 

d. 1837. 
Lydia, b. May 8, 1758 ; m. Feb. 18, 1779, Jonathan Brigham ; they 

moved to western New York, and settled in the Genesee country. 



449 



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25-30 
31 
32 
33 
34 

35 

30 
37 



38 
39 



19-26- 



26-40 



41 



Daniel Stevkns m. 1st, March 14, 1770, Comfort Brigham, dan. 
of Joseph and Comfort Brigliam. She d. May 1!*, 1771, and he m. 
2d, June 2, 1772, Lydia Brigham. She d. Dec. 28, 1782, and he m. 
3d, May 13, 1783, Lavinia Barnard, dau. of Joel and Lucy (Stevens) 
Barnard. He d. suddenly, Nov. 7, 1810, aged 61. She d. Dec. 19, 
1855, aged 94 years and (j months. He marched to Cambridge at the 
" Lexington Alarm," in 1775. 

Samuel, b. Feb. 21, 1771 ; d. Aug. 29, 1775. 

Samuel, b, Oct. 29, 177(5; d. Jan. 1(5, 1791. 

Li/dia, h. May 18, 1778; ni. 1795, Seth Rice, and d. April 11, 1842. 

Edward, b. March 10. 1781 ; d. Aug. 1, 1782. 

Luci/, b. Oct. 18, 1784 ; m. April 5, 1814, John Kendall, and d. June 

30, 1854. 

Betsey, b. Sept. 11, 1786; m. Oct. 3, 1811, Jabez Rice, and d. Dec. 

31, 1845. 

Sophia, b. Sept. 1^ 1788 ; m. June 7, 1814, Samuel Haywood, Acton. 

Salh/, b. July 2, 1791 ; m. Dec. 4, 1817, Elijah Hale. Col. Hale was 
for a number of years in trade with Cranston & Felton, at Felton- 
ville ; and, like them, contributed to the growth and prosperity of the 
place. He was also associated with Joel Cranston, Esq., in building 
up the manufacturing village of Rock Bottom, in Stow. In 1825 
he removed to Stow, where he has been one of their prominent men 
in the town and church. He rose to the rank of Col. in the militia, 
has been many years a magistrate, and has represented the town in 
the General Court. 

Mnnj, b. July 14, 1793; m. Dec. 11, 1814, William Trowbridge, and 
d."Feb. 1, 1826. 

Mi^;ail, b. Sept. 7, 1795; m. Oct. 9, 1822, John M. Hartwell, of Lit- 
tleton. 



Francis Stevens m. Feb. 20, 1776, Elizabeth Brigham, dau. of 
Asa Brigham. She d. June 3, 1827, aged 72. He d. 1829, aged 80. 

John, b. Jan. 12, 1777; m. April 10, 1603, Mary Brigham, dau. ofCapt. 

Daniel Brigiiam. Capt. John Stcvons had Eliza R., b. Sept. 10, 

1803, m. 1825, Sidney Brigham; Mary Jinn, b. Oct. 24, 1805, m. 

1829, Curtis Brigham; Melinc, b. Jaii. 12, 1808, d. 183(5, unm. ; 

Harriet, b. Dec. 25, 1809; John Jf\, b. Feb. 5, 1812; Charlotte, b. 

April 19, 1814, m. 1835, Dennis F. Witherbee; Almira, b. May 2(5, 

1818. He d. Feb. 3, 1822, aged 45. 
Aaron, b. Jan. 2(5, 1779; m. May 19, 1806, Mary Gates, dau. of Capt. 

William Gates. Like his brother John, he bore the appellation of 

Capt., and like him was a prominent citizen. He is still (18(J1) 

living. He had William F., b. April 22, 1807, m. 1831, Hannah H. 

Clark ; Lyman Gill and Loriman Gates, (twins,) b. April 14, 1811. 



There were other Stevenses in Marlborough, more or less remotely 
connected with this family. Nathaniel Stevens, of Lancaster, 
probably a grand-son of Cyprian, m. Mary Martin, dau. of Thomas 
and Mary (Gove) Martin. He had in Marl. Lucy, b. Oct. 1, 1745 ; 
and J\''athaniel Gove, b. April 7, 1752, m. 1774, Lois Stow. 



Daniel Stevens, Jr., connected with the Bent family, m. July 20, 
1797, Eunice E. Robinson, of Concord. He was a man remarkable 
for his size, weighing over 300. He represented the town several 
years in the Legislature, and held a commission of justice of the 
peace. She d. Feb. 20, 1844, aged 69. 



450 



1- 2 

3 

4 



1- 2 
3 
4 



1-3- 



3- 5 

G 
7 
8 
S) 
10 

]1 
12 
13 



3-11- 



1- 2 
4 

C 



1-2- 



Isaac T., b. Jan. 3, 1798; m. Oct. 17, 1817, Catharine Felton. They 
had a family of tliirteen children, seven sons and six dau. Their 
oldest son, Daniel Waldo, grad. H. C. 184G, read theology, and is 
settled at Mansfield. 

Jinn Bent, h. Sept. IG, 1799 ; m. Sept. 10, 1820, Issachar Dickerman, 
and had eleven children. 

Eu7iice C, b. June 24, 1801 ; d. unm. May 26, 1836. 



THE STEWART FAMILY. 

Alexander Stewart was in Marl, as early as 1689. His wife's 
name was Deborah. She d, April 22, 1720, aged G8. He d. April G, 
1731. 

Manj, b. Feb. 13, 1G89. 

jDaniel, b. Feb. 6, 1G91 ; m. Dec. 12, 1718, Persis Witt. 

Alexander, b. Jan. 15, 1G96. 



Daniel Stewart m. 1718, Persis Witt. 

John, b. May 4, 1721 ; d. Aug. 20, 1740. 

Daniel, b. Oct. 14, 1722. 

Man/, b. Oct. 16, 1724 ; m. Edmund Parminter. 

Deborah, b. Feb. 18, 1727; ni. Feb. 24, 1748, Isaiah Witt. 

Persis, b. March 23, 1729; d. Aug. 25, 1736. 

Jintipas, b. Dec. 28, 1733 ; grad. H. C. 1760 ; was a minister, and d. 

1814. 
\Rediat, b. April 12, 1736 ; m. Lucy Adams. 
Ebenezer, b. Aug. 22, 1738; d. Aug. 1, 1740. 
Persis, b. June 19, 1743 ; m. May 15, 1766, Jabez Ayres. 



Rediat Stewart m. 1764, Lucy Adams, and had Benjamin, b. 
Aug. 27, 1766 ; Persis, b. April 4, 1768 ; Silas, b. March 6, 1770. 



STONE. — Simeon Stone, by wife Hannah, had Hannah, b. Jan. 
15, 1746. 



THE STOW FAMILY. 

John Stow, with his wife Elizabeth and six children, came to New 
England in one of Winthrop's companies, and settled in Roxbury. 
He arrived here the 7th of the third month, 1634. He was made 
freeman, 1634, member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Com- 
pany, 1638, and Representative, 1639. He was probably the father of 
Thomas, of Concord and of Middletown, Ct. Elizabeth, wife of 
John, d. 1638. Stoiv was a very ancient name in England, particu- 
larly in Middlesex and Lincolnshire. 

\Tlwmas, b. in Eng, 3 Elizabeth, b. in Eng. 

John, b. in Eng. 5 Mathaniel, b. in Eng. 

Sainuel, h. in Eng. ; grad. at H. C, 1645 ; was a clergyman in Middle- 
town, Ct. ; d. 1704. 
Thankful, b. in Eng. 



Thomas Stow was in Concord before 1640, where he had a family 
of at least three sons, Samuel, Thomas and Nathaniel. He and his 



451 



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9 
10 



2-8- 



-11 
12 
]3 
14 
15 
16 



3-11- 



11-17 
19 
20 
21 
22 
23 

3-12- 



12-24 
25 
27 

28 
29 



brother Nathaniel owned COO acres of land between Fairhaven Pond 
and Sudbury line. Thomas sold his right in 1060 to Thomas Gobble 
and David Dean— he having previously moved to Connecticut. He 
probably left Concord about 1050, and moved to Middletown, then a 
part of Hartford. He had at least three sons, and probably dau. 

^Sarmiel, b. 1645 ; he returned and settled in Marlborough. 

A'athaniel, b. . 

Thomas, b. 1650 ; settled in Middletown, Ct. 



Samuel Stow was in Marlborough before 1684, at which time he 
bought of Waban and James Atchuit, two Indians of Natick, for £6 — 
£3 in money and £3 in corn — twenty acres of land in Marl. He was 
also one of the proprietors of Ockoocangansett plantation, purchased 
of the Indians. He became a prominent man in the propriety and in 
the town. He served in Philip's war, and probably came to town soon 
after the peace, as his name appears on a petition for the plantation in 

1677. He m. Elizabeth . He d. Feb. 9, 1721, aged 76; she d. 

June 17, 1737. They were the ancestors of the Stows of Marl., 
which have been somewhat numerous, and have continued in town to 
the present day. 

\Samiiel, b. May 2, 1680 ; m. Dec. 19, 1704, Sarah Snow. 
\Thomas, b. Dec. 27, 1()82; m. Jan. 20, 17l3, Hannah Johnson. 
Mary, b. July 18, 1685; m. Juno 13, 1706, Jonathan Morse. 
Thnnkfid, b. Oct. 8, 1687 ; m. March 29, 1710, Samuel Stevens. 
Rachel, b. Feb. 21, 1690; m. Dec. 14, 1715, Luke Rice. 
\John, b. March 30, 1696; m. April 25, 1722, Elizabeth Brigham. 



Samuel Stow m. Dec. 19, 1704, Sarah Snow. She d. Feb. 20, 
1762 ; he d. Feb. 13, 1768, aged 88. They lived together as husband 
and wife 58 years. 

Ahner, b. Nov. 29, 1705. 18 Jonathan, b. Oct. 9, 1708. 

Thankful, b. April 30, 1711 ; m. Jan. 23, 1736, Nahum Newton. 

Solomon, b. Oct. 10, 1714. 

Sarah, b. March 22, 1717 ; m. June 26, 1744, John Minot, of Concord. 

Maty, b. Aug. 11, 1719 : d. March 20, 1737, unni. 

^Simon, b. March 19, 1722; m. June 9, 1746, Sarah Hayden. 



Thomas Stow m. Jan. 20, 1713, Hannah Johnson, dau. of William 
and Hannah. She d. June 15, 1789. He d. Aug. 28, 1765. His will, 
proved Oct. 8, 1765, mentions sons Benjamin, Thomas, Samuel, 
Stephen, and David, and Experience Newton, deceased ; also son 
Josiah, who is required to provide for the support of his mother, 
Hannah. The provision for the wid. is so immediately connected 
with the mode of living at that day, that I will give a few of the 
items. This enumeration will apply substantially to other cases at 
that period : "9 bushels of corn, 3 of rye, 2 of malt, 120 pounds of 
pork, 80 pounds of beef, 2 barrels of cider, 20 pounds of mutton, 1 
bushel of salt, 2 gallons of rum, 4 gallons of molasses, 6 pounds of 
sugar, annually, together with the income of 2 cows, apples, sauce, 
and a horse and tackling to ride to meeting, &.c." 

Comfort, b. July 16, 1716; d. 1716. 

Thomas, b. Sept. 8, 1717 ; d. 1717. 26 Benjamin, b. Aug. 25, 1718. 
David, b. Oct. 14, 1719 ; d. young. 

\Thomas, b. Oct. 15, 1720; m. June 3, 1752, Elizabeth Newton. 
Charles, b. Dec. 31, 1721 ; d. young. 
dS 



452 



30 
31 
32 
33 
34 
35 
36 
37 
39 



8-16- 



16-40 

4] 

42 
43 
44 
45 
46 

47 

48 

49 



11-23- 



23-50 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 
57 
58 
59 

12-28- 



28-60 
61 
62 

12-30- 



30-63 



\Samucl, b. Dec. 26, 1723 ; m. April 28, 1748, Rebecca Howe. 
\Stephen, b. Dec. 15, 1724 ; m. May 23, 1753, Abigail Smith. 
Josiah, b. Dec. 8, 1725; d. young. 
Hannah, b. Dec. 9, 1726 ; d. young. 

Experience, b. Feb. 24, 1727 ; m. Newton. 

David, b. April 29, 1729. 

^Josiah, b. July 5, 1730; m. 1760, Rnth Howe. 

Hannah, b. Sept. 8, 1731. 38 Sahella, b. Sept. 4, 1732 ; d. 1752. 

Silas, b. Oct. 20, 1734. . 



John Stow m. April 25, 1722, Elizabeth Brigham, dau. of Nathan 
and Elizabeth. She d. Oct. 11, 1757; and he d. July 2, 1761, aged 
65. His will, proved July, 1761, mentions sons Manasseh and John, 
and dau. Elizabeth Eager, Hannah Ward, Mary Howe, Keziah Morse, 
Abigail Hager, and Sarah Hager. Manasseli was mentioned as of 
Southborough. 

Eiizaheth, h. July 17, 1723 ; m. May 20, 1752, John Eager, and d. 

1801. 
Manasseh, b. Nov. 8, 1724 ; m. Nov. 17, 1747, Dinah Morse. He d. 

1776; r. South. 
Hannah, b. July 14, 1726 ; m. Nov. 26, 1745, Beriah Ward. 
Miriam, b. Jan. 7, 1729; d. July 7, 1741. 

Mary, b. Sept. 2, 1730 ; m. June 9, 1752, Asa Howe, of Petersham. 
Keziah, b. Sept. 8, 1732 ; m. Nov. 27, 1755, Abner Morse, and d. 1823. 
Jlbiffail, b. Aug. 7, 1734 ; m. Dec. 26, 1753, Ebenezer Hager, and d. 

1823. 
Ephraim, b. March 30, 1736 ; d. Oct. 19, 1752. 
Sarah, b. April 4, 1738; m. Feb. 12, 1761, William Hager, and d. 

Dec. 17, 1804. 
jJohn, b. Nov. 17, 1740; m. June 4, 1766, Grace Newton. 



Simon Stow m. June 9, 1746, Sarah Hayden. She d. Dec. 22, 
1794, and he d. Dec. 16, 1795, aged 73. He was elected deacon of 
the church, 1770. 

Lois, b. March 8, 1747 ; d. the same year. 

Hiram, b. March 6, 1748 ; he left Marlborough. 

\Heman, b. Jan. 10, 1750 ; m. Abigail Brown, of Sudbury. 

Lois, b. Jan. 29, 1752 ; m. Nov. 10, 1774, Nathaniel Gove Stevens. 

Lucy, b. Nov. 15, 1753; d. unm. Sept. 13, 1841, aged 89. 

\(^uarlus, b. Aug. 26, 1755 ; m. April 4, 1782, Hannah Ray. 

Joab, b. Jan. 14, 1758. He left town, and d. in New York. 

Levina, b. July 24, 1760; m. July 17, 1775, Stephen Felton. 

Abel, b. May 10, 1762 ; d. 1762. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 22, 1765; m. Dec. 21, 1786, John Whitman. 



Thomas Stow m. Elizabeth Newton. He d. Jan. 11, 1810, aged 
90. 

\Ephraim, b. Nov. 2, 1752; m. March 30, 1780, Sarah Baker. 
Dorothy, b. Aug. 13, 1754 ; m. April 18, 1776, John Temple, 
]Jlbraham, b. Jan. 10, 1756 ; m. Dec. 5, 1782, Elizabeth Hager. 



Samuel Stow m. April 28, 1748, Rebecca Howe. He was elected 
deacon of the church, 1770, and d. Jan. 12, 1813, at the advanced age 
of 90 years. She d. Oct. 8, 1818, aged 91 years. They lived hus- 
band and wife, 65 years. 

Anna, b. Jan. 8, 1749; m. April 1, 1766, Joseph Williams. 



453 



12-31- 

31-64 
12-36- 



30-66 
67 

68 
6!) 
70 

16-49- 



49-71 
72 
73 

74 



23-52- 



52-75 

76 

77 

78 
79 
80 

81 

82 



83 



23-55- 



55-84 



28-60- 



28-62- 



Stephkn Stow m. May 23, 1753, Abiirail Smitli. 
of their first two children, they removed from town. 



After the birth 



Lydia, b. March 24, 1754. 



65 Silas, b. April 26, 1756. 



JosiAH Stow m. Feb. 19, 1760, Ruth Howe, dau. of Peter and 
Grace Howe. He d. March 28, 1818, aged 87 ; and she d. Nov. 18, 
1610, aged 76. They lived husband and wife, half a century. 

Experience, b. March 19, 1761 ; m. April 17, 1781, John Glcason. 
Rachel, b. Dec. 22, 1762; m. Jan. 19, 1789, Joshua Bailey. 
Persis, b. July 22, 1765; m. Dec. 11, 1792, Silas Brigham, of South. 
Joel, b. Nov. 19, 17()6; m. Feb. 14, 1806, Elizabeth Barnes. 
^Jabez, b. March 11, 1769; m. Dec. 11, 1792, Sarah Barnes. 



JoH.v Stow m. June 4, 1766, Grace Newton, dau. of Micah and 
Mary Newton. He d. Feb. 18, 1828, aged 88 ; and she d. May 26, 
1824, aged 78. They lived in the marriage state 58 years. 

Elizabeth, b. Sept. 12, 1767; m. Sept. 27, 1785, William Howe. 
\mniam, b. March 23, 1773; m. March 31, 179G, Phebe Morse. 
Mary, b. May 27, 1780; m. March 11, 1804, Daniel Williams. She 

is still living. 
Sara/i, b. Feb. 16, 1783 ; m. May 19, 1802, Solomon Howe. They 

moved to Berlin, where they spent their days. 



Heman Stow m. 1771, Abigail Brown, of Sudbury. He d. Jan. 
25, 1829, aged 79. She d. Nov. 29, 1830, at Northboro', aged 77. 
The town Books contain no record of the birth of his ciiildrcn. From 
imperfect private records, I have collected the following; though I 
may not have arranged the children in the order of their birth. 

Elizabeth, b. ; d. Oct. 10, 1772. 

Lydia, b. Oct. 7, 1772; m. 1794, Levi Maynard. 

Martin, b. Oct. 13, 1773. He was killed by falling from the scaffold 
in the barn, 1783. 

Liicinda,h. ; m. Dec. 17, 1801, William Morse. 

Levina, h. ; d. June 11, 1803, aged l(i years. 

ff'iUiam Brown, b. ; grad. at Will. Coll., 1811; read theology, 

and was settled at Wilmington, Vt. ; m. Lucy Moore ; d. 1854, ait. 74. 

Beulah, b. ; m. 1811, William Brown. 

Martin Luther, b. ; grad. at Will. Coll., 1813; read law, and 

went into practice, first at Marl, and then at Northboro' ; he m. Eliz- 
abeth Brigham, dau. of Joseph Brigham ; d. 1843, set. 48. 

Abigail, b. July 6, 1791. 



QuARTUs Stow m. April 4, 1782, Hannah Ray. He d. June 20, 
1798. He was in service several campaigns in the Revolutionary 
war. There is no record of his children on the books. He had 
several ; one d. 1795. 



Mary, b. Sept. 22. 1786; m. Aug. 18, 1802, Ephraim Maynard. 



Ephraim Stow m. March 30, 1780, Sarah Baker, and had John, 
b. July 2, 1780. 



Abraham Stow m. Dec. .5, 1782, Elizabeth Hager, dau. of Ebene- 
zer and Abigail. She d. Aug. 6, 1827, aged 69; and he m. 1828, 
Wid. Lydia Maynard ; he d. Jan. 2, 1832, aged 76. 



454 



(32-85 

87 
88 
89 

no 

91 

92 
93 

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70-94 
95 
9(3 

49-72- 



72-97 

98 

99 

100 



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2- 3 



3- 4 
5 



7 



3-7- 



7- 8 
9 
10 
11 
12 
13 



Tivo children, b. Feb. 11, 1784 ; d. the same week. 

A child, h. Nov. G, 1785 ; d. March 25, 1786. 

Caie, b. May 27, 1787 ; d. unm. 

Rufus, b. July 30, 1789: m. Dec. 9, 1813, Thankful Brigham, and 

had William Bradford, b. March 14, 1828, and nine daughters. 
Jerre, b. April 28, 1791; m. Feb. 4, 1813, Levinah Howe, and had 

Emerson, b. 1815 ; Ehenezer V., b. 1817 ; and three daughters. 
^«ro7i, b. Feb. 18, 1793; m. May 18, 1724, Diana Howe, and had 

Ljjdia C. ; Edwvrd M., and Abraham H., and d. June 6, 1836. 
Elizabeth, b. Sept. 6, 1795 ; d. unm. 
Phebe, b. Dec. G, 1797 ; d. unm. 



Jabez Stow m. Dec. 11, 1792, Sarah Barnes, dau. of Moses and 
Sarah. 



Rachel, b. May 18, 1794 ; m. 1818, John Burnham, of Bolton. 

Patty, b. ; m. 1824, Phinehas Welch, Bolton. 

Josiah, b. ; d. a young man, unm. 



William Stow m. March 31, 1796, Phebe Morse. He d. April 
11, 1808; and she m. Dec. 15, 1812, Rev. Dr. Puffer, of Berlin, and 
d. Jan. 12, 1856. 



Truman, b. Oct. 7. 1796; m. 1815, Hannah Manson. 
South, and d. at Jacksonport, Arkansas, Dec. 22, 1857. 
Eugenia, b. May 29, 1801 ; m. Rev. Lyman Gilbert. 
Freeman, b. May 19, 1805; d. at Newton, Feb. 26, 1854, 
William, b. Feb. 8, 1808. He resides at Louisville, Ky. 



He moved 



THE STRATTON FAMILY. 

Samuel Stratton b. in England, 1592; m. in Boston, Aug. 28, 
1657, wid. Margaret Parker. He resided in Watertown, and d. Dec. 
19, 1672. 



John Stratton, son of Samuel, was admitted freeman. May 27, 
1663 ; he m. March 10, 1(559, Elizabeth Traine, who d. May 7, 1708. 
They had 9 children. 



Joseph Stratton b. Jan. 13, 1666; m. Nov. 14, 1695, Sarah 
Howe, dau. of Abraham and Hannah (Ward.) She d. his wid., Oct. 
1, 1746. In 1711, he was assigned to Nathan Brigham's garrison, 
together with Henry Bartlett, and Alex. Stewart. 

Joseph, b. Oct. 15, 1696 ; d. 1774. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 30, 1700 ; m. Jan. 25, 1720, Thomas Brigham. - 
Elizabeth, b. Sept. 13, 1710; m. April 12, 1732, Abraham Temple. 
^Jonathan, b. Dec. 28, 1714 ; m. 1742, Betty Brigham. 



Jonathan Stratton m. Feb. 23, 1742, Betty Brigham. He d. 
Aug. 10, 1758. 

\Jonathan, b. Sept. 29, 1742 ; m. Sept. 10, 1765, Abigail Barnes. 

Betty, b. April 11, 1744; m. Sept. 4, 1764, William Brigham. 

Sarah, b. March 20, 1746; m. Nov. 14, 1769, Daniel Barnes. 

Samuel, b. Dec. 30, 17-18. 

Lucy, b. Dec. 4, 1750; d. April 1, 1771, unm. 

Aaron, b. Sept. 6, 1753; d. Oct 19, 1753. 



455 



Jonathan Stratton m. Sept. 10, 17().'>, Abiorail Barnes, dau. of 
Jonathan and Rachel Barnes. She d. his wid. Dec. 30, 1794. 

Abigail, b. Sept. 22, 1766 ; d. June 11, 1771. 

Jonathan, b. Feb. 8, 1769. IG Abigail, b. Nov. 27, 1771. 

Aaron, b. Nov. 16, 1773. 

\Moses, b. Nov. 16, 1775 ; m. 1791, Elizabeth Hervey. 

Salli/, b. Nov. 7, 1777 ; m. ? Dec. 29, 1793, Moses Eager. 

Samuel, b. Nov. 9, 1779 ; d. young. 

Samuel, h, Sept. 6, 1781. 22 Lydia, b. April 20, 1785. 

An7ia, b. Aug. 27, 1787. 24 Plicbe, b. Feb. 27, 1790. 



Moses Stratton m. 1794, Elizabeth Hervey, and had Lambert, b. 
Feb. 8, 1795; Betsejf, b. April 12, 1798 ; Lucy, b. May 13, 1801 ; Ly- 
man, b. Aug. 9, 1803 ; George Washington, b. June 22, 1805 ; Harriet 
F., b. Nov. 10, 1809. 



THE TAYLOR FA^HILY. 

The Taylors were early in Marl., but like the Smiths and Bakers, 
they were numerous among the first emigrants to New England, and 
it is exceedingly difficult to trace them. 

James Taylor appears earliest on the Records. He was a pro- 
prietor of the Indian plantation in 1693, thougli he was probably 
earlier in the town. His wife's name was Sarah. Ho d. Feb, 11, 
1713. 

\ James, b. April 22, 1674 ; m. Elizabeth before 1696. 

Hannah, b. July 1, 1()79; m. Dec. 4, 1699, Abiol Lamb. 
^Samuel, b. April 10, 1688 ; m. 1716, Hannah Greely. 

James Taylor m. Elizabeth . 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 16. 1696; m. Sept. 6, 1722, Nathaniel Joslin. 
Othniel, b. Oct. 19, 1698; m. Sept. 1, 1725, Mercy Newton. 
Sarah,h. Aug. 26, 1700; m. Nov. 10, 1718, Benjamin Mills. 
Amity, b. May 5, 1704. 9 Hannah, b. April 10, 1706. 

James, b. Aug. 1, 1708. 11 Abraham, b. March 24, 1710. 



Samuel Taylor m. 1716, Hannah Greely. 



Eliphalet,h. Dec. 15, 1716. 
Hannah, b. March 22, 1722. 



13 Mary, b. Nov. 12, 1718. 
15 Isaiah, b. March 17, 1725. 



William Taylor, perhaps brother to the first named James, m. 
Mary Johnson. She d. 1697, and he m. 1699, Sarah Lakin. 

\Eleazer, b. April 11, 1678 ; m, 1699, Lydia Barrett. 

William, b. Jan. 21, 1680 ; d. young. 

Mary, b. Dec. 6, 1684 ; d. young. 5 Man/, b. June 6, 1686. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 1, 1688. 7 Daniel, b. June 19, 1690. 

William, b. Feb. 15, 1692 ; m. 1717, Elizabeth Hapgood, and had, 1718, 

Jonah. 
Martha, b. Nov. 14, 1694. 10 Mercy, b. July 27, 1697. 

Ebenezer, b. Jan. 4, 1702; m. Jan. 1, 1723, Mary Banister. 
Elisha, b. May 17, 1704. 



456 



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4 

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Elf.azer Taylor m. April 18, 1699, Lydia Barrett, dau. of John 
and Mary Barrett, b. Sept. 5, 1()74, and liad Eleazer, b. Dec. 3, 1699, 
and John, b. July ^8, 1703. She d. \7'i0.— Eleazer m. 1721, Judith 

Hapgood. John m. Martha , and had Eleazer, b. Oct. 15, 1734 ; 

John, b. Feb. 27, 1736 ; Oliver, b. Dec. 10, 1737 ; Maiiha, b. Aug. 13, 
1739 ; William, b. Oct. 16, 1741, d. young ; Elizabeth, b. Jan. 7, 1743 ; 
ffilliam, b. Dec. 25, 1745 ; Hannah, b. June 12, 1749. 



There was a Jesse Taylor, who by wife Mary had Jesse, b. March 
24, 1734 ; Robert, b. July 28, 1735 ; Mart/, h. Feb. 28, 1737 ; Daniel, 
b. June 17, 1739; Lydia, b. Aug. 19, 1740; Micah, b. Jan. 8, 1743; 
William, b. Nov., 1744 ; Miriam, b. June 7, 1746. 



THE TAINTER FAMILY. 

Joseph Tainter, b. in England, 1613, sailed for America in 1638, 
and settled in Watertown. He m. about 1640, Mary Grey. He d. 
1690, aged 77 ; and she d. 1705, aged 86. 



Joseph, h. Sept. 2, 1645. 
\Jonathan, b. Sept. 10, 1654. 



3 Benjamin, b. Feb. 22, 1650. 
5 Simon, b. Sept. 30, 1660, 



Jonathan Tainter m. Elizabeth Warren, of Wat. He was in 
King Philip's war. 

Jonathan, b. July 12, 1682. 7 Benjamin, b. June 30, 1685. 

\Joseph, b. May 2.5, 1688 ; m. Thankful Barrett. 



Joseph Tainter m. April 20, 1715, Thankful Barrett, of Marl., 
dau. of John and Deborah (Howe) Barrett, b. July 16, 1697. He had 
been in town a year or two before his marriage. He was a deacon of 
the Marl, church. They lost four children in Feb., 1740, two in one 
day. He d. Feb. 19, 1764. 

John, b. Nov. 1, 1710; m. May 20, 1741, Sarah Ward; r. in Shrews- 
bury and Woodstock, Ct. 

Elizabeth, b. April 8, 1719. 11 Hannah, b. Feb. 19, 1722. 

\Jo7ialhan, b. Jan. 7, 1724 ; m. Nov. 18, 175.5, Sarah Woods. 

Joseph, b. April 4, 1726 ; d. Feb. 28, 1740. 

Zeruiah, b. Feb. 14, 1728 ; d. Feb. 20, 1790. 

Miriam, b. Nov. 21, 1729 ; d. Feb. 11, 1740. 

Benjamin, b. Jan. 12, 1733; m. 1755, Sarah Brigham; r. in Shrews- 
bury. 

David, b. Jan. 3, 1735 ; d. Feb. 15, 1740. 

Mary, b. Feb. 15, 1738; d. Feb. 11, 1740. 



Jonathan Tainter m. Nov. 18, 1755, Sarah Woods, dau. of Ben- 
jamin and Elizabeth Woods. He d. June 9, 1808, aged 75. 

Catharine, b. May 6, 1756 ; m. Nov. 23, 1774, Antipas Howe. 

David, b. April 5, 1759. 

Anne, b. Aug. 31, 1761 ; m. Oct. 19, 1792, Aaron Howe. 

Lydia, b. Nov. 23, 1762 ; d. Jan. 4, 1835, unm. 

\John, b. Oct. 14, 1764 ; m. March 30, 1786, Esther Goodnow. 

\ Joseph, b. Feb. 12, 1766 ; m. 1800, Nancy Gould. 

Sarah, b. Nov. 11, 1767 ; m. March 8, 1786, David Wilkins. 

Lucy, b. March 25, 1770 ; m. Nov. 26, 1788, Stephen Bush. 

Elizabeth, b. Nov. 10, 1775; ra. 1803, Levi Bailey. 



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23-28 

29 
30 
32 
34 
35 

12-24- 



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37 
39 
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22 



John Tainter m. March 30, 1786, Esther Goodnow. He d. March 
17, 1807, aged 42, and she m. Oct. 5, 1815, William Loring. 

Sarah, b. May 5, 1787; ni. Sept. 9, 1804, Aaron Arnold. 
Aaricj/, b. Oct. 31, 1789; m. April 11, 1811, Apollos Bond. 
Luther, b. March 4, 1795. 31 Joel, b. Nov. 13, 1796. 

Jlaron, b. April 9, 1799. 33 Luaj, b. Sept. 30, 1801. 

Jha, b. March 27, 1804. 
John, b. Oct. 5, 1806 ; d. June 7, 1807. 



Joseph Tai^jter m. 1800, Nancy Gonld. 
aged 78. 



He d. Sept. 13, 1845, 



Eliza, b. June 19, 1801 ; d. Aug. 26, 1835, aged 34, unni. 
Henni, b. Jan. 14, 1803. 38 Hollis W., b. April 1, 1804 ; m. 

Sophia, b. April 18, 1806; m. 1829, Riifus Howe. 
Abigail B., b. Dec. 9, 1808; d. April 12, 1810. 
Migail, b. Juno 13, 1811 ; d. Feb. \(\ 1812. 
Jonathan, b. July 25, 1814; d. unm. 
Ann Maria, b. July 6, 1817 ; d. unni. 
Sarah B., b. Aug. 11, 1819; m. Dr. Knight. 



THE TEMPLE FAMILY. 

Isaac Temple m. March 1, 1699, Martha Joslin. He is supposed 
to be son of Abraham, of Concord, b. 1678. 

Martha, b. Feb. 25, 1700 ; m. April 24, 1723, John Bush. 

Sarah, b. May 1, 1702. 

Isaac, b. Feb. 8, 1704 ; ni. June 25, 1725, Elizabeth Holland ; r. in 

Shrewsbury, where his descendants were numerous. 
Migail, b. March 14, 1706. 

^Abraham, b. March 19, 1708 ; m. Elizabeth Stratton. 
Manj, h. Feb. 22, 1710. 8 John, b. Jan. 23, 1712. 

Thankful, b. Sept. 20, 1713; m. May 16, 1733, Ephraim Slierman, of 

Grafton. 

\Jonas, b. Feb. 8, 1716; m. Sarah . 

Persis, b. Dec. 29, 1718. 



Abraham Temple m. Elizabeth Stratton, April 12, 1732. 

Joseph, b. Aug. 30, 1732. 

jJonathan, b. May 5, 1735 ; m. Nov. 6, 1760, Dorothy Morse. 

Sarah, b. March 24, 1737. 



Jonas Temple m. Sarah 



He d. March 8, 1803, aged 87. 



Moses, b. Nov. 11, 1772; m. July 14, 1793, Betty Stratton. 

Sarah, b. Dec. 3, 1773 ; m. Feb. 8, 1795, Luther Cloyes. 

\Silas,'b. March 7, 1775; m. March 27, 1796, Lydia Arnold. She d. 

and he m. a 2^ wife. They joined the Shakers. 
Martha, b. Feb. 19, 1777. 

Elizabeth, b. March 18, 1779; m. Dec. 6, 1795, William Sawin. 
Persis, b. April 9, 1781; m. May 10, 1804, Eli Maynard. 
Jonas, b. June 15, 1784; m. 1809, Betsey Maynard. 
JVabby, b. Sept. 25, 1787 ; m. Dec. 9, 1804, Josiah Walcut. 



458 



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24 
25 
27 

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30 
31 
32 
33 
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5 

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7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

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1 



1- 2 
3 



Jonathan Temple m. Nov. 6, 1760, Dorothy Morse, dau. of Joseph 
and Abigail. 

Lydia, b. Aug. 2, 1761 ; d. 1767. 

Sarah, b. Oct. 16, 1762 ; m. Feb. 26, 1781, Thomas Baker ? 
Jasper, b. July 19, 1764. 26 Isaac, b. June 30, 1767. 

John, b. Nov. 27, 1769; m. June 5, 1800, Nabby Wilkins. 



Silas Temple m. March 27, 1796, Lydia Arnold. She d. and he 
m. a 2d wife, and joined the Shakers. 

Betsey, b. June 27, 1796 ; m. March 24, 1823, George Williams. 

Lydia, b. Sept. 11, 1798; m. Dec. 17, 1823, Joseph Balcom. 

S(dbi, b. Sept. 17, 1800; m. Sept. 17, 1821, Henry Balcomb. 

William Ji., b. March 13, 1803 

Ifillard, b. Sept. 29, 1805 ; d. Dec. 9, 1805. 

Phebe, b. April 22, 1808. 34 Lucinda, b. Aug. 3, 1811. 

Lyman, h. May 1, 1814. 

There were other Temple families in Marlborough, but their record 
is so meagre that they cannot be connected. 



John Temple m. April 18, 1776, Dorothy Stow. He d. Feb. 11, 
1838, aged 87. She d. Dec. 28, 1838, aged 87. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 13, 1776. 3 Dorothj, b. June 30, 1778. 

Miriam, b. June 18, 1780. 

Migail, b. Mny 7, 1782, m. Oct. 17, 1805, William Barry. 

John, b. April 30, 1784. 

Lucy, b. April 22, 1786; m. March 16, 1807, Moses Howe. 

Anna, b. July 21, 1788 ; m. Oct. 13, 181 1, Ephraim Howe. 

Mruham, b. Oct. 27, 1790; d. Dec. 29, 1790. 

Mary, b. Dec. 9, 1791 ; ni. May 28, 1811, Asa Stearns. 

Ira, b. Jan. 4, 1794 ; m. April 3, 1821, Mrs. Betsey Maynard. 

Lydia, b. March 7, 1797 ; m. Oct. 25, 1818, Daniel Dadman ? 



David Temple m. March 14, 1782, Rebecca . She d. March 

24, 1785, and he m. Dec. 3, 1786, Elizabeth Adams. He d. Sept. 24, 
1821, aged 82 ; and she d. April 16, 1836, aged 86. 

Rebecca, b. Jan. 8, 1783; m. April 19, 1807, Jonas Goodnow. 
John, b. March 14, 1785 ; m. Nov. 23, 1824, Polly Sherman ? 

There is scarcely a family in town whose record is more confused 
than the Temples. 



THAPING. — George Thaping, by wife Rebecca, had Rebecca, b. 
Nov. 26, 1739. 



THOMAS.— William Thomas m. May 26, 1721, Lydia Eager, 
and had Levina, b. Aug. 15, 1721, m. 1744, Benjamin Bigelow ; Sophia, 
b. July 28, 1723; William, b. March 10, 172.5; Lydia, b. Sept. 30, 
1727; Mary, b. Feb. 16, 1729, m. 1746, Joseph Morse; Odvardo, b. 
May 7, 1731. 



TOMBLIN.— Isaac Tomblin, from Brookfield, m. Dec. 10, 1696, 
Mary Wait, of Marl., and had in Marl. Isaac, b. Dec. 22, 1697, m. 
1721, Martha Newton, and lived in West. ; Hezekiah, b. Sept. 27, 
1700 ; Hannah, b. Dec. 15, 1702 ; Mary, b. Nov. 20, 1705 ; Sarah, b. 
April 15, 1708; Ruhamah, b. Sept. 30, 1709; Lydia, b. June 29, 1716. 



459 

Matthew ToMBLirf, by wife Esther, had Jo/171, b. May 2, 1691. 



TOWNSEND.— Benjamin Townsend, by wife Susanna, had 
Benjamin, b. May 5, 1711; John, b. April 16, 1714; Jonathan,]). 
April 26, 1717. 



Joseph Townsend, by wife Hannah, had Lydia, b. July 14, 1731 ; 
Joseph, b. Dec. 25, 1734. 



TROWBRIDGE.— Joseph Trowbridge m. April 27, 1788, Lucy 
Barnes, and had William, b. July 11, 1788, m. 1816, Mary Stevens; 
Betsexj, b. April 3, 1791 ; Marrj, b. May 23, 1793, m. 1812, James 
Symmes ; Ephraim, b. Nov. 15, 1795 ; Luther, b. Sept. 13, 1801 ; 
Lucy, b. Aug. 15, 1803. 



VOCKARY.— John Vockary, b. in Taunton, England, was 29 
years of age, Jan., 1724. He m. Feb. 12, 1720, Lydia Newton, and 
had Sarah, b. April 24, 1721 ; ^imbrose, b. June 27, 1723 ; Susanna, b. 
Aug. 8, 1725. 



WAIT. — Joseph Wait by wife Ryhamah, had 1st, Jflltiam, b. 
Sept. 25, 1()79, m. Abiah, and had dcrshom, 1701; Jason, 1702; Sarah, 
1704 ; 2d, John, b. Feb. 7, 1692 ; 3d, Joseph, b. March 17, 1694. 



Joseph Waight, (or Wait,) by wife Hepzibah, had Moses, b. May 
18, 1780. 



WALCUTT. — Jesse Walcutt, perhaps from Stow, by wife Re- 
becca, had Jabez, b. Dec. 17, 1756 ; Phebe, b. Dec. 1, 1758; Estlur, b. 
March 5, 1761 ; Ruth, b. June 2, 1763. 



WALKER. — Obadiah Walker, probably from Sud., where the 
name was quite common, by wife Hannah, had Silas, b. July 17, 1716 ; 
Hannah, b. Nov. 8, 1718 ; Obadiah, b. June 8, 1721. 



Samuel Walker, by wife Mary, had Mary, b. June 29, 1739 ; 
Hannah, b. March 13, 1741; Lois, b. Oct. 24, 1743; Fashii, b. May 
28, 1746 ; Sarah, b. March 23, 1748. 



WALKUP. — Thomas Walkup, by wife Sarah, had Elizabeth, b. 
May 11, 1771. 



THE WARD FAMILY. 

The Wards were among the first families who settled in Marl. 
Several females of that name, also m. in Marl. 

William Ward was in Sud. as early as 1639, and was a proprietor 
of lands there. He was living at that time with a second wife. He 
represented Sud. in 1644, in the General Court; he was several years 
chairman of the selectmen there. In 1656, he and others belonging to 
Sud. petitioned the General Court for the plantation of Marl. He 
moved to Marl. 1660. His wife's name was Elizabeth. He d. Aug. 
10, 1687, and she d. Dec. 9, 1700, aged 87. He had fourteen children, 
four or five of which were born abroad. 

Joh7i, b. about 1626; m. Hannah Jackson ; lived in Newton. 
Joanna, b. 1628 ; m. Abraham Williams ; lived in Marl. 
59 



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37 



1-11- 



\Ohadiah, b. about 1032; m. Mary ; resided in Marl. 

Richard, b. about 1635; m. Mary Moore ; resided in Sud. 

Deborah, b. about J637; m. Jobn Johnson ; moved to Marl. 

Hannah, b. about 1639 ; m. Abraham Howe ; lived in Marl. 

\}Villiam, b. Jan. 22, 1640 ; m. and resided in Marl. 

\Samuel, b. Sept. 24, 1641 ; m. Sarah Howe; resided in Marl. 

Elizabeth, b. April 14, 1643. 

^Increase, b. Feb. 22, 1644 ; m. and resided in Marl. 

Hopestill, b. Feb. 24, 1646 ; m, James Woods ; lived at Marl. 

Mary, b. about 1047 ; m. Daniel Stone ; resided at Sud. 

Eleazer, b. about 1649 ; m. Hannah Rice. He resided in Sud. and was 

slain by the Indians upon the highway between Marl, and Sud., 

April 20, 1676. 
Bethiah, b. about 1658 ; m. Daniel Rice, of Marl. 



Obadiah Ward m. Nov. 13, 1607, Mary . He had land as- 
signed to him in Sud. in 1653, and a house-lot and after-divisions in 
Marl. 10(J0, and moved there soon after, where his wife Mary d. Aug. 
22, 1700. He m. when past 74 years of ago, Joanna Mixer, of Wa- 
tertown. He was representative from Marl, in 1689, and d. Jan. 5, 
17 i 8, aged 80. They had thirteen children, concerning whom but 
little is known. 

Mice, b. Nov. 14, 1668. 

\William, b. Jan. 7, 1070; m. Judith . 

\ Obadiah, b. Sept. 18, 1072; m. Elizabeth . 

Bethiah, b. 1074, d. same year. 20 Man/, b. May 4, 1076. 



Jane, b. 1077. 
Sarah, b. Jan. 29, 1081. 
Elizabeth, b. 1085. 
Eleazer, b. 1089. 



22 Edmund, b. Jan. 21, 1079. 
24 Richard, b. April 20, 1083. 
20 Hannah, b. 1688. 
28 Prudence, b. 1691. 



William Ward m. Hannah Fames, wid. of Gershom Fames. He 
resided in Marl, as did also his father, southerly of the first meeting- 
house. He d. Nov. 25, 1697. She d. Dec. 8, 1720, aged 64. 

fVilliam, b. March 27, 1680; m. Jane Cleveland, and resided in that 
part of Marl, now Southborough, where he had a family, among 
whom was Hezekiah, Elisha, William and Charles. William Ward 
rose to the rank of colonel, and was a justice of the peace. 

Bethiah, b. ; m. Elnathan Brigham. 

jJVahum, b. Dec. 18, 1684 ; m. Martha Howe. 

Elish't, b. Jan. 12, 1686, was killed or taken captive by the Indians at 
Worcester, 1709, while riding post from Marl, to Hadley. 

Bathsheba, b. May 16, 1689; d. Oct. 0, 1093. 

Gershom, b. Jan. 3, 1693 ; represented Marl. 1 738, and d. unm. 1739. 



Samuel Ward m. June 6, 1667, Sarah, dau. of John Howe, of 
Marl. She d. Aug. 11, 1707. He had a 2d wife, who survived him. 
He d. 1729, aged 84. He had 7 children — 4 dau. and 3 sons. 



f Joseph, b. 1070 ; m. Abiah Wheelock. 
\ Samuel, b. March, 1078 ; m. Mary — 
Daniel, b. 1087; d. April 13, 1700. 



Increase Ward m. Record , and resided in that part of Marl. 

now Northboro'. His farm was on the river, and he had a saw-mill. 



461 



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54 
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58 
59 



probably near the present factory. He d. Aug. 4, 1690, aged 46 ; she 
d. July 26, 1726. They had a family of children who resided in 
Northboro' and Westboro'. 



William Warp m. Judith , and resided in Marl., where they 

had liilliam, b. 1691; Gamaliel, b. 1694; Jacob, b. 1()97 ; and four 
dau. He moved to Ashford, Ct., with his family. 



Obadiah Ward m. Elizabeth . He d. in Marl. March 14, 

1752, aged 80. He had two wives, and nine children. Jabez was the 
only son who m. ; and after the birth of his children, moved with his 
family to New Marlborough, 1744. 



Nahum Ward m. July 16, 1714, Martha Howe, dau. of Daniel, of 
Marl. He followed the sea in early life, and afterwards moved to 
Shrewsbury, where he was col., justice of the peace, representative, 
and judge of the Court of Common Pleas. He was the father of Arte- 
mas Ward, b. 1727, grad. H. C. 1748, and who was a major in the 
French war ; and at the opening of the Revolution in 1775, he was 
appointed General, and Commander-in-Chief of all the forces raised 
by the Colony. He had the command of the troops at Cambridge, till 
superseded by Washington. 



Joseph Ward m. June 5, 1700, Abiah Wheelock. He d. June 30, 
1717, aged 47, leaving 7 children. 

^Daniel, b. April 14, 1701 ; m. Dec. 10, 1727, Mary Bigelow. 
Elizabeth, b. June 22, 1703 ; d. Jan. 4, 1707. 

\Phinehas, b. Aug. 5, 1705; m. Mary . 

Thankful, b. April 4, 1706 ; probably m. Ebenezcr Phelps. 
Elizabeth, b. Dec. 19, 1710. 

Joseph, b. Sept. 5, 1713; m. 1742, Sarah Palmer; moved to Mendon. 
Jlbigail, b. Oct. 23, 1716 ; m. 1744, Abijah Knapp. 



Samuel Ward m. Mary . He d. Feb. 27, 1738, aged 60. 

She d. Jan. 17, 1758. 

Ephraim, b. June 26, 1705; m. 173:3, Susanna Weeks ; r. in South. 

Msalom, b. Sept. 20, 1706 ; m. 1740, Mary Wilkinson ; r. in South. 

Tamar, b. Sept. 11, 1708 ; d. at Marl. unm. 

Samuel, b. Jan. 11, 1709; d. unm. 

Usley, b. Aug. 23, 1711 ; m. 1736, Nathan Prescott, of Marl. 

Uriah, b. Aug. 2, 1716 ; m. 1741, Sarah Oakes ; moved to Charlton. 

Benjamin, b. Nov. 10, 1719 ; m. Mary Oakes ; r. in Charlton. 



Daniel Ward m. Dec. 10, 1727, Mary Bigelow. She d. April 10, 
1750, and he m. Jan. 24, 1758, Grace, wid. of Edward Barnes, and 
dau. of Joseph Newton, Jr., of Marl. She in. 1st, 1726, Simon Rice ; 
2d, 1739, Edward Barnes ; and last, Daniel Ward. He d. May 12, 
1764, aged 63 years and 17 days. His wid., Grace, d. May 16, 1788, 
aged 84 years and 3 months. 

Silas, b. Jan. 22, 1730 ; d. March 25, 1732. 

Ruih, b. Feb. 20, 1731 ; m. 1753, Ithamar Brigham, and d. 1766. 

Jibiah, b. Jan. 31, 1734 ; ra. Eleazer Davis. 

Bethiah, b. Feb. 26, 1736 ; m. Silas Bowker, of Westboro'. 

Mary, b. June 7, 1738 ; m. Nov. 29, 1759, Jonas Morse, Jr. 

Abigail, b. Aug. 22, 1740; m. Dec. 2, 1764, James Williams. 

Daniel, b. May 27, 1745 ; m. Anna Rice. 

Samuel, h. March 20, 17.50 ; probably d. young. 



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Phinehas Ward m. Mary . He d. Oct. 19, 1756, aged 51. 

His wid. settled his estate, and was living 1763. His " homestead 
contained 203 acres of land, partly in Marl, and partly in Bolton, 
adjoining together with the river running through the same." 

Martha, b. April 18, 1739 ; m. Feb. 21, 1759, Abner Haskell. 
Josiah, b. Sept. 4, 1741 ; m. Sarah Goodale ; r. Henniker, N. H. 
Phinehas, b. April 27, 1744 ; m. Dorothy Osgood ; r. Henniker, N. H. 
Reuben, b. Dec. 28, 1746; m. Sarah Kendall ; r. Marl., N. H. 
Mary, b. Nov. 5, 1749 ; d. Oct. 26, 1756. 
Joseph, b. May 13, 1752 ; d. March 9, 1756. 



As most of the Wards moved or were set off from Marl, at an early 
day, and as an excellent genealogy of the Ward family has been pub- 
lished by one so well qualified, (Andrew H. Ward, Esq.,) I have been 
more brief than I should otherwise have been with this ancient and 
influential family. 



THE WARREN FAMILY. 

The Warrens were early in New England, though they did not 
come to Marl, till about 1730. 

John Warren came to the country in 1630, aged 45, and settled 
in Watertown. He was admitted freeman, May 18, 1631, and was 
selectman 1636 to '40. In 1()54 he was fined for not attending public 
worship 14 Sabbaths. His wife Margaret d. Nov. 6, 1662, and he d. 
Dec. 13, 1667. His will mentions four children, probably all born in 
England. 

John, b. 1622, made freeman, 1645. He m. July 11, 1667, Michal, 
the wid. of Richard Bloys. He was a Capt. and selectman. He d. 
1703, and she d. July 14, 1713. They had seven children, five dau. 
and two sons. 

John, b. May 21, 1678. He settled in "Watertown Farms," now 
Weston ;_where he m. 1st, Abigail Hastings. She d. July 19, 1710, 
and he m. 2d, May 14, 1711, Lydia Fiske. He d. 1726, and his 
wid. settled his estate. She m. again in Weston, July 17, 1730, 
Benjamin Harrington. He had ten children. 

\John, b. April 3, 1701 ; settled in Marl. 

Sarah, b. Sept. 20, 1702 ; m. Oct. 29, 1725, Samuel Harrington. 

Samuel, b. March 18, 1704 ; m. 1728, Tabitha Stone. 

TJiomas, b. March 11, 1706; m. 1727, Lydia Mixer. 

David, b. June 22, 1708 ; probably d. young. 

Benjamin, b. April 4, 1715 ; d. Aug. 16, 1790. 

j David, b. Jan. 8, 1717; settled in Marl, and m. Eunice . 

Abigail, b. Oct. 28, 1719. 12 Lucy, b. Oct. 26, 1721. 

William, b. Oct. 21, 1723 ; d. 1739. 



John Warren m. Zippora Brigham, dau. of Nathan and Elizabeth 
Brigham. She d. May 2, 1790. He d. Dec. 27, 1783. He filled 
many important town offices. 

Elizabeth, h. March 31, 1734 ; m. June 13, 1754, Asa Brigham. 

John, b. Oct. 16, 1735 ; d. April 25, 1737. 

Jlmie, b. Aug. 27, 1737 ; m. Oct. 26, 1757, Larkin Williams. 



/ 



463 



Uohn, b, June 19, 1739; m. Jan. 27, 1763, Rachel Barnes. 

Persis, b. April 9, 1741 ; m. Arnold. 

Hastings, b. Feb. 20, 1743; d. Nov. 17, 1760, at Albany, in the 

French war. 
Catharine, b. Nov. 3, 1745; m. Feb. 21, 1763, Bailey Eager. 
\Thaddeus, b. March 20, 1767; m. Dec. 27, 1770, Lucy Stevens. 



David Warren m. Eunice 



Damaris, b. June 26, 1750; ni. Aug. 24, 1769, Jonah Harrington. 
Levina, b. Dec. 30, 1752. 24 LoveivtU, b. Oct. 23, 1764. 



John Warren m. Jan. 27, 1763, Rachel Barnes. He was a prom- 
inent citizen, and filled the office of selectman, and town clerk, a num- 
ber of years, and received other marks of public confidence. lie bore 
the title of Lieut. 



Jlnna, b. Dec. 15, 1766. 



26 William, b. May 13, 1769. 



Thaddeus Warren m. Dec. 27, 1770, Lucy Stevens, dau. of 
Sanmel and Lucy Stevens. She d, June 17, 1821; he d. June 18, 
1821, aged 74. They were buried at the same time in the same grave. 

Lydia, b. Jan. 28, 1773; m. Nov. 28, 1791, Asa Goodnow. 

John, b. Dec. 2, 1774; m. Betsey Nixon, of Framingham, and resided 

in Dorchester. 
Samuel, b. June 1, 1777; m. 1st, 1813, Betsey W. Brigham, and m. 

2d, 1822, Rebecca Morse. 
Hastings, b. July 20, 1779; moved to Middloboro', Vt. 
Lucy, b. Oct. IS, 1781 ; m. June 13, 1804, Thomas T. Hunt. 
Sarah, b. July 5, 1784 ; m. Jan. 3, 1810, Solomon Weeks. 
Edward, b. Aug. 4, 1786; went a missionary to Ceylon, and died. 
Elizabeth, b. March 19, 1789; d. March 22, 1816, unm. 
Sophia, b. Feb. 16, 1792 ; m. 1830, Rev. Isaac Bonney, and d. 1855. 
Millicent, b. March 23, 1797; m. March 15, 1819, David Goodale, 

d. 1861. 



There was another family of Warrens in Marl, earlier than the one 
mentioned, but the record gives no account of them except what is 
contained below. They were of the Watertown stock. 

Daniel Warren, and wife Rebecca Garfield, had Daniel, b. Nov. 
19, 1712, and Timothy, b. Sept. 14, 1715. 

Daniel m. Hannah , and resided in West, and Shrews., and had 

a family of five children, b. before 1745. He was in the French and 
Indian war, 1746, was taken prisoner at Fort Massachusetts, and 
carried by the Indians to Canada. I have not learned his fate. 

Timothy settled in West., was twice married, had ten children, and 
numerous descendants in that town. 



THE WEEKS FAMILY. 

The Weekses were not among the earliest settlers in Marl., though 
the family has been somewhat prominent. 

Supply Weeks, the first of the name in Marl., was the son of 
Amiel and Abigail (Trescott) Weeks, of Dorchester, and was born 



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Aug. 20, 1071. Arniel Weeks was son of George and Jane, of the 
first settlers of Dorchester. Supply m. June 4, 1099, Susanna Barnes, 
an adopted dau. of Dea. John Barnes, and a dau. of Thomas Barnes, of 
Marl. He was m. as of Marl, and hence was in the place before that 
date. She d. Jan. 15, 1712, and he m. March 10, 1715, Mary Holland, 
of Framingham. He d. Sept. 22, 1755, aged 84. 

\Thojnas, b. Sept. 5, 1700 ; m. Hannah 

Jemima, b. Feb. 23, 1702 ; rn. May 19, 1730, Isaac Tomblin. 
Abigail, b. Jan. 20, 1704. 

\Jlmiel, b. Oct. 13, 1705 ; m. Mary . 

f Jo A?i, b. March 3, 1707; m. Dinah Keyes. 

Elijah, b. Feb. 4, 1710. 

Susanna, h. Jan. 11, 1712 ; m. Jan. 30, 1734, Ephraim Ward. 



Thomas Weeks m. Hannah 



10 Ruth, b. Dec. 2, 1720. 



Hannah, b. Feb. 3, 1725. 

Samuel, b. March 31, 1729. 

Eunice, b. Sept. 19, 1730; d. Nov. 13, 1731. 

Phebe, b. Jan. 13, 1733. 14 Thomas, b. April 21, 1735. 



Amiel Weeks m. Mary 



Kathar 
Mary 



trine, ) , -n , -,n i-or« S m- Oct. 10, 1700, Nathan Sparhawk. 
' > b. reb. lb, l/oo. < ,— ^ ^ , tj i ^ 

^ ' ^ m. 1//0, Solomon Banker. 



John Weeks m. Dinah Keyes, 1731. She d. Dec. 15, 1784; he 
d. Feb. 11, 1787, aged 79. John Weeks was a man of considerable 
note, and rose to the rank of colonel. He also held a commission of 
justice of the peace. 

Josiah, b. Nov, 1, 1732; m. 1755, Mary Goodnow. 

\Francis, b. June 28, 1734; m. Feb. I, 17.57, Thankful Stevens. 

Betty, b. Jan. 20, 1730 ; m. Jan. 4, 1758, Stephen Brigham. 

Dinah, b. Oct. 2, 1737; m. 1st, Nathan Goodale; 2d, Jotham Sawyer. 

John, b. July 25, 17.39; m. May 19, 1702, Mary Bigelow, and had 

Molly, b. Jan. 27, 1706. 
\ Jonathan, b. Dec. 3, 1741 ; m. Thankful Bigelow, 
Susanna, b. Nov. 5, 1743; m. May 22, 1704, Benjamin Rice. 



Francis Weeks m. Feb. 1, 1757, Thankful Stevens. She d. Sept. 
6, 1771. 

Anna, b. Nov. 18, 1757. 

Katharine, b. Dec. 12, 1759; m. Stephen Allen. 

William, b. April 18, 1702. He was in the service in Rhode Island in 

the Revolution. After the war he m. Martha Barnes, and moved to 

St. Albans, Vt. 
Benjamin, b. Aug. 21, 1764 ; d. Dec. 4, 1784. 
Lucy, b. Nov. 25, 1700 ; d. Dec. 10, 1784, unm. 
Moses, b. June 0, 1770. 



Jonathan Weeks m. April 22, 1707, Thankful Bigelow, dau. of 
Thomas and Elizabeth Bigelow, who d. Nov. 3, 1775. He m. 2d, 
Aug. 20, 1777, Lucy Newton, dau. of Micah and Mary (Howe) New- 
ton. He d. April 5. 1805, aged 63. He filled the office of Capt. She 
d. July 7, 1817. 



465 



^ohn, b. Oct. 1, 1768 ; m. Betsey Felton. 

.^aron, b. July 30, 1770; d. Oct. 17, 1775. 

Elizabeth, b. Dec. 2, 1772; m. Jan. 15, 1794, Ilcman Seaver. 

Francis, b. Jan. 15, 1775; d. Oct. 14, 1775. 

Jonathan, b. Oct. 31, 1778 ; m. Sept. 1 1, 1798, Sally Clark. 

David, b. May 2fi, 1781 ; went to Groton; d. 1820. 

Mary, h. July 10, 1783; m. Dec. 8, 180G, David P. Parker. 

Solomon, b. Sept. 14, 1785; m. Jan. 30, 1809, Sally Warren. 

Phebe, b. Jan. 13, 1788; d. Aug. 1812. 

Francis, b. Nov. 1, 1790; m. 1st, 1814, Sally Brown; 2d, Hannah 

Brown. 
Lucy, b. Oct. 1, 1793; m. 1815, Ebenezer Ames. 



John Weeks ni. June 7, 1787, Betty Felton, dau. of Archelaus 
Felton. He d. Nov. 3, 1826, aged 58. 

Betsey, b. Aug. 21, 1789; m. 1812, John P. Maynard. 

Sally, b. July 22, 1792 ; m. 1820, Stephen Felton, Jr. 

TJiankful, b. Jan. 22, 1795 ; m. Jabez Walcutt. 

Mary, b. Feb. 26, 1798. 45 jrUliam, b. July 27, 1800; d. 1805. 

Hannah A., b. Jan. 6, 1803 ; m. Daniel Parminter. 

Lydia, b. Dec, 24, 1804 ; m. Patch. 

Lucy, b. Sept. 8, 1807 ; m. William Wheeler. 

Johri, b. April 12, 1810 ; m. Nancy Hager ; moved to Western N. York. 



WELLS. — Nathaniel Wells, by his wife Mary, had Ichabod, b. 
July 11, 1718; John, b. Nov. 27, 1719; j\athaniel, b. Oct. 18, 1721 ; 
Lovell, b. Nov. 13, 1723 ; Shadrach, b. Aug. 15, 1726. 



THE avhp:p:ler family. 

Thomas Wheeler was in Concord with a family in 1640, and in 
1775, accompanied Capt. Hutchinson, himself then a Captain, with 
about twenty men to Quaboag, now Brookfield, to treat with the 
Indians. They were there drawn into an ambush, and suddenly fired 
upon by the perfidious Indians, and eight of their number were in- 
stantly killed. Capt. Hutchinson was mortally wounded, and died at 
Marl, soon after. Capt. Wheeler was sorely wounded, had his horse 
shot under him, and when near being dispatched by the enemy, was 
rescued by his son, Thomas, he also being wounded, who placed his 
father upon a horse whose rider was slain, and both succeeded by 
flight in saving their lives. Capt. Wheeler died in Concord the year 
following. His son 

Thomas Wheeler, whose wife was Hannah , had John, b. in 

Concord, 1661, and perhaps other children born there; but soon after 
settled in Marl. See Ward's Shrewsbury. 

John Wheeler m. June 25, 1684, Elizabeth Wells. He d. 1721. 

\John, b. Aug. 15, 1695; moved to Shrewsbury. 

Martha, b. July 22, 1698. 

\Joseph, b. April 19, 1700; m. Jan. 16, 1718, Elizabeth Holloway, 

Ephraim, b. May 1, 1702. 8 Daniel, b. Aug. 12, 1704. 



John Wheeler m. Mary Hapgood, dau. of Thomas Hapgood. 
After the birth of their second child, they moved to Shrews. They 
had Cyrus, b. Nov. 7, 1717; and Darius, b. Dec. 27, 1719; and other 
children b. after they left Marl. 



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Joseph Wheeler m. 1st, Elizabeth Holloway, and 2d, March 17, 
1730, Deborah Whitney. He d. April 23, 1772. 

Sarah, b. Aug. 8, 1730; m. Jan. 9, 1752, Samuel Morse. 

\Silas, b. Oct. 23, 1732; m. Abigail Bowker. 

John, b. Feb. 22, 1734. 

Solomo7i, b. Feb. 25, 1736; d. Nov. 26, 1773. 

David, b. May 4, 1738 ; d. young. 

Joseph, b. June 14, 1740. 15 Elizabeth, b. April 4, 1742. 

David, b. Dec. 8, 1744. 17 Miriam, b. Dec. 4, 1746. 

Dinah, b. Jan. 1, 1749, d. young. 19 Dinah, b. Dec. 1, 1750. 

Fortunatus, b. April 29, 1754. 



Silas Wheeler m. July 27, 1758, Abigail Bowker. 
25, 1802. 



He d. April 



^nna, b. Aug. 11, 1760; m. April 23, 1783, William Barnard. 

Lucy, b. Nov. 17, 1762. 

Jlsa, b. Oct. 16, 17(54; m. Jan. 27, 1792, Sarah Thompson, and had 
Manj v., b. May 17, 1793 ; Luman, b. May 19, 1795 ; Dexter, b. June 
26, 1797 ; Asa B., b. March 24, 1799; Lorenzo, b. Nov. 24, 1800. 



WHEELOCK. — Samuel Wheelock was in Marl, early, and by 
his wife Lydia, had ten children, nine of whom are recorded in Marl. 
His oldest son, Gershom, went to Shrewsbury, and is said to have 
been one of the hrst settlers in that town. He m. in Marl. Jan. 1, 1719, 
Abigail Flagg, and went immediately to Shrewsbury. .His father 
with his family followed the next spring. Samuel Wheelock was one 
of the first deacons of the church there. His children were uers/iom ; 
Samuel, b. 1696; Martha, b. 1698; Elizabeth, b. 1700; Hannah, h. 
1701 ; Tamar, b. 1704 ; Manj, b. 1706 ; Daniel^h. 1708 ; Lois, b. 1710 ; 
Rachel, b. 1714. ' 



WHITCOMB.— Simeon Whitcomb m. 1767, Judith Brown, and 
had Darius, b. 1768 ; Lucij, b. 1770; Oliver, b. 1774; Asaph, b. 1778 ; 
Ephraim, b. 1780. 

There were other Whitcombs residing near the line of Stow and 
Sudbury ; but there is no record by which they can be traced. 

Zelotes Whitcomb d. May 13, 1812. Timothy Whitcomb d. Oct. 
29, 1815, aged 82. Wid. Whitcomb d. Feb. 25, 1841, aged 82. 



THE WHITNEY FAMH^Y. 

I find great difficulty in tracing the Whitneys who have been in 
Marl, from time to time. 

John Whitney, aged 35, and his wife, Eleanor, aged 30, embarked 
at London, April, 1635, in the Elizabeth and Ann, Roger Cooper, 
master, and probably arrived in this country in June, and settled in 
Watertown. With them came sons John, aged 11 years, Richard, 
aged 9, JVathaniel, aged 8, Thovias, aged 6, and Jonathan, aged 1 year. 
They had Joshua, Caleb and Benjamin, b. in Wat. 

Thomas Whitney, b. in Eng., 1629 ; ni. Jan. 11, 1655, Mary Ken- 
dall. He resided in Wat., where he had 12 children, and d. Sept. 
20, 1719, aged 90. 



467 



2- 3 Thomas Whit.-vey, son of the above, was b. Aiiar. 24, 1650, being 
I the oldest of the family. He in. Jan. 29, 1679, Elizabeth Lawrence. 
He resided in Watertown, Stow, and that part of Lancaster which is 
now Bolton, where he d. 174"2 ; and she d. a few weeks earlier. He 
had 7 or 8 children. 

Benjamin Whitney, their fifth child, b. Oct. 7, l(i87, ni. Feb. 7, 
1710, Sarah Barrett, dau. of John Barrett, of Marl. She d. Feb. 15, 
1730, aged 38, and he in in 1730, Abigail Bridge, dau. of Matthew 
and Abigail (Russell) Bridge, of Lexington. She survived her hus- 
band about 30 years, and d. in Boston, Aug. 1, 17(!7. He first bought 
in Marl, in 1710,321 acres of land, of Samuel Morse. In 1711 he 
was of Simon Maynard s garrison. He was a large land-holder in 
Marl. He is said to have been one of the first of the name who 
settled in Boston, to which place he removed in 1737, and d. there, 
aged 50. He had 14 children. 

Dehorah, b. Nov. 7, 1711 ; m. Joseph Wheeler, resided in Marl., and 
had 12 children. 

Barrett, b. Sept. 22, 1715; in. June IG, 1737, Elizabeth Allen, in 
Boston. 

David, b. June 21, 1717 ; m. Mercy . 

Persis, b. Jan. 10, 1719; in. Nathan Goodale, of Marl., and had a 
family of 13 children. 

Solomon, b. Dec. 20, 1721 ; m. Oct. 5, 1749, Elizabeth Smith. He d. 
17.58. He had 2 children in Marl., Miriam, h. July 31, 1751, and 
Benjamin, b. June 10, 1753. He moved to Canada, and had several 
other children. 

Sarah, b. July 13, 1723; m. Abraham Joslin. 

Timothij, b. July (J, 1725 ; d. young. 

Dinah, h. July 12, 1727; m. in Boston, Elijah Livermorc. 

Joi, b. Oct. 22, 1729 ; grad. H. C. 17.")8, read theology, commenced 
preaching, and d. unm., June 13, 17()1. 

Jtbiscail, b. May 13, 1731 ; m. Samuel Austin, as his 2d wife. He and 
his brother, Benjamin Austin, were of the leading merchants of 
Boston who first opposed the aggressions of the Crown. 

Benjamin, b. May 9, 1732 ; d. March 22, 1751. 

Geor«:e, b. March 22, 1733; d. Dec. 2(5, 1751. 

Samuel, b. Sept. 5, 1734 ; m. Oct. 20, 17.57, Abigail Cutler, dau. of 
David and Lydia. He resided in Concord from 1767 to 1777. He 
was a delegate from Concord in the first Provincial Congress, in 
1775, and was a leading member of the Committee of Safety, Corres- 
pondence and Inspection. He participated in the incidents of the 
19th of April, 1775. He subsequently moved to Castine, Me., 
where he d. July 2, 1813, aged 78. 

Jlnna, b. Oct. 23, 1736 ; m, 1761, William Barnes, of Boston. 



There were other Whitneys in town ; some came from Plopkinton, 
some from Littleton, and other places: but there is nothing upon the 
records or within my knowledge by which I can trace them. 

Timothy Whitney, by wife Phebe Reed, had a family of 8 
children. 

jTJiomas, b. June 15, 1777 ; m. June 23, 1798, Abigail Hapgood. 
Susanna, b. Feb. 26, 1782. 4 jYaihan, b. Aug. 15, 1784. 

Lewis, b. April 7, 1788. 6 Edward fV., b. Jan. 29, 1793. 

Phebe, b. March 12, 1795. 8 Henry, b. Nov. 6, 1797. 

Sophia, b. Dec. 25, 1799. 
60 



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Thomas Whitney m. June 23, 1798, Abigail Hapgood. 
Lucy, b. Sept. 8, 1798. 11 JVilliam Hapgood, b. July 5, 1800. 



Daniel Whitney, by wife Gate, had Lutlier, b. Feb. 23, 1781 ; 
John Stone, b. June 20, 1783 ; JViUiam, b. Aug. 22, 1785. 



WILDER. — John Wilder, by wife Hannah, had Hannah, b. May 
14, 1680 ; James, b. . 



Jonathan Wilder, by wife Mary, had Jonathan, b. Dec. 21, 1707, 

who m. Mary , and had Solomon, h. Dec. 18, 17.38 ; Jonathan, b. 

July 31, 1741 ; Marij, b. Aug. 25, 1743; Solomon, b. Aug. 22, 1747 ; 
Sarah, b. June 17, 1749 ; Lydia, b. May 25, 1754 ; Ephraim, b. Nov. 1, 
1755 ; Eunice, b. May 3, 1759. 

The Wilders probably came from Lancaster. 



THE WILKINS FAMILY. 

John Wilkins came to Marl, from Danvers, about 1740, with two 
sons, and settled in the northerly part of the town. He d. May 14, 1763. 

fJosiah, b. in Danvers ; m. Lois Bush. 
\Edward, b. in Danvers ; m. Lydia Smith. 



Josiah Wilkins m. Lois Bush, dau. of Jonathan and Sarah. He 
d. Aug. 21, 1784. She d. March 24, 1796. 

John, b. Feb. 21, 1745 ; m. April 4, 1769, Elizabeth Bruce. 

Jonathan, b. June 28, 1747 ; d. young. 

Mary, b. Jan. 17, 1750 ; m. 1774, Silas Taylor, of Stow. 

\Josiah, b. July 11, 1752; m. Judith Fox. 

Jonathan, b. June 19, 1755 ; studied theology, and settled at Concord, 

N. H. 
^Levi, b. Aug. 3, 1758 ; m. Oct. 19, 1784, Hepzibah Darling. 
Lois, b. Dec. 31, 1760 ; m. Dec. 15, 1785, Rev. John Bruce. 
\ David, b. Sept. 1, 1763 ; m. March 8, 1786, Sarah Taynter. 



Edward Wilkins m. Nov. 21, 1748, Lydia Smith. He d. Nov. 27, 
1763 ; and she m. Feb. 6, 1765, Abner Cranston, and d. June 14, 1801. 

Jonas, b. Oct. 2, 1749 ; d. April 2, 1753. 

Elizabeth, b. July 8, 1752; m. March 14, 1769, Abraham Randall. 
\Jonas, b. Aug. 25, 1755; m. Jan. 20, 1785, Comfort Priest. 
\Edtvard, b. Nov. 5, 1757 ; m. Jan. 14, 1779, Sarah Dunn. 
Solomon, b. May 29, 1 760 ; m. about 1802, Persis Gates, of Stow ; d. 
Nov. 28, 1825. 



JosiAH Wilkins m. Judith Fox. She d. and he m. — 
dau. of Samuel Bruce. He was a soldier in the Revolution. 



Bruce, 



John, b. June 5, 1777 ; moved^to Boston. 

Lovice, b. April 24, 1779 ; resides at New Ipswich, N. H. 

Levina, b. Aug. 9, 1782. 

Josiah, b. Sept. 30, 1786 ; moved to Mobile, where he was appointed 

judge of probate. 
ff^illiam, b. Feb. 15, 1788; moved to Boston. 



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Levi Wilkins m. Oct. 19. 1784, Hepzibah Darling. He d. Jan. 29, 
1816. She d. March 5, 1838. 



9-22 Mary, b. March 7, 1785 ; m. 1812, David Knight, of Bolton. 

23 Lucy, b. May 1, 1786 ; d. unm. 1821. 

24 Stephen, b. Sept. 17, 1788; m. 1812, Relief Whitcomb. 

25 Josiah, b. March 23, 1791 ; d. young. 

26 John, b. Sept. 30, 1793 ; m. 1809, Sally Smith, and had Levi. 

27 Elizabeth, b. Oct. 13, 1795; m. Elisha Cox. 

28 Sophia, b. July 17, 1799; d. young. 



David Wilkins m. March 8, 1786, Sarah Taynter. They moved 
to New Ipswich, N. H. 



Lucretia, b. Aug. 3, 1786. 
Luther, b. Dec. 30, 1789. 
Lois, b. March 29, 1793. 
JWibby, b. Feb. 21, 1797. 
Abraham, b. May 3, 1801. 



30 Levina, b. Dec. 30, 1788. 
32 Silas, b. Dec. 25, 1791. 
34 Sarah, b. Feb. II, 1795. 
36 George, b. June 22, 1799. 



Jonas Wilkins m. Jan. 20, 1785, Comfort Priest, who d. Oct. 7, 
1785. He m. Sarah Barnard, April 22, 1786. He d. May 13, 1822. 
She d. Aug. 21, 1822, aged 57. 

Comfort, b. Oct. 7, 1785 ; d. Feb. 23, 1786. 

Comfort, b. April 4, 1787; d. unm. aged 20. 

tVilliam, b. Jan. 15, 1789; d. young. 

Caty, b. Jan. 29, 1790 ; in. 1818, Hollis Loring. ' 

Jane, b. Jan. 11, 17i>2; m. Benjamin Whitcomb. 

Joel, b. April 10, 1795 ; m. Lydia Maynard. 

fVilliam, b. July 5, 1797 ; m. Elizabeth Bruce. 

Mary B., b. Aug. 31, 1799; d. 1808. 

Elizabeth R., b. Aug. 8, 1802 ; m. Willard Brown. 

Sally, b. Sept. 20, 1804; m. Amory Bruce. 



Edward Wilkins m. Jan. 14, 1779, Sarah Dunn. He d. May 17, 
1837, aged 80. She d. Jan. 16, 1829, aged 73. 

Sally, b. April 15, 1779 ; m. Feb. 19, 1800, Ivory Brigham. 
A''ancy, b. July 10, 1781 ; m. June 5, 1800, John Temple, Jr. 
Betsey, b. May 9, 1783 ; m. Sept. 6, 1801, Jedediah Wood. 
Lydia, b. April 13, 1785; m. March 19, 1805, Phinehas Brigham. 
Hannah, b. Sept. 5, 1787; d. unm. 

Lucinda, b. Aug. 4, 1791 ; m. June 16, 1814, Jacob Felton. 
Edward, b. Sept. 20, 1793; m. April iS, 1824, Mary Holman, of Ster- 
ling. He is one of the most prominent men in the N. part of Marl. 
Harnel, b. May 30, 1801 ; d. July 7, 1801. 



THE WILLIAMS FAMILY. 

Abraham Williams became a proprietor of Marlborough in 16C3. 
He was admitted a freeman in 1652. He m. Joanna Ward, dau. of 
William and Elizabeth Ward. He settled in Marl, near the Pond, at 
the place long known as the " Williams Tavern." He represented 
the town in the General Court, and d. Dec. 29, 1712. His wid. d. 
Dec. 8, 1718, aged 90. The record of his family is very defective, 
but his will, or deed of gift, supplies some of the defects in the 
records. It is dated Dec. 28, 1712. 



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Elizabeth, b. ; m. before 1679, Thomas Beaman. 

\lVilliam, b. ; m. Elizabeth . 

John, b. ; d. Jan. 3, 1718. Elizabeth and John were living at the 

death of their father in 17 J 2. 
Lydia, b. July 9, 1699. 



William Williams m. before 1692, Elizabeth 
30, 1702. 

Thomas, b. Sept. 10, 1692; d. Sept. 19, 1692. 
\Abraham,, b. April 15, 1695; was thrice married. 



-. He d. Aug. 



Abraham Williams m. Jan. 5, 1715, Prudence Howe, dau. of 
Thomas and Sarah. She d. Jan. 16, 1725, and he m. 2d, Dec. 22, 
1725, Elizabeth Breck, dau. of Rev. Robert Breck. She d. Jan. 13, 

1729, and he m. 3d. Elizabeth . She d. Aug. 9, 1775. He was a 

prominent citizen, and filled man}' important town offices. He attain- 
ed the rank of colonel, and in 1775, commanded the 3d regiment of 
militia of Middlesex and Worcester. He was also a justice of the 
peace. He d. July 10, 1781, aged 86 years. 

Isaac, b. , 1716; d. July 18, 1716. 

Elizabeth, b. June 18, 1723; d. July U, 1723. 

\ Abraham, b. Feb. 25, 1727; grad. H. C., 1744. He was a clergyman. 

\Larkin, b. Dec. 29, 1728; m. Oct. 26, 1757, Anna Warren. 

^William, b. Aug. 22, 1731 ; m. Nov. 19, 1761, Betty McPherson. 

Moses, b. Aug. 5, 1732 ; d. June 26, 1802, aged 69. 

Elizabeth, b. Aug. 23, 1733; m. May 3, 1759, Daniel Payne. 

Breck, b. Aug. 23, 1734 ; d. Sept. 3, 1734. 

Abigail, b. Jan. 10, 1736; probably d. young. 

\Gcorge, b. Dec. 27, 1736; m. Aug. 30, 1759, Mary McPherson. 

Mary, b. May 27, 1739 ; m. Feb. 6, 1766, Cyprian Howe, his 2d wife. 

William, b. March — , 1740; m. Jan. 5, 1763, Phebe Rice, and had 

Phebe, b. 1764. 
Catharine, b. Dec. 17, 1741 ; m. May 25, 1769, William Smith. 
Ephraim, b. Nov. 12, 1743. 22 Paul, b. Oct. 12, 1744. 

Lncy, b. March 22, 1747. 
Boardman, b. Jan. 12, 1754 ; d. May 3, 1777. 



Abraham Williams m. 1751, Mrs. Anna Buckminster, of Framing- 
ham. He was ordained at Sandwich, 1749, and d. at Framinghani, 
Aug. 8, 1784, aged 58. 



Larkin Williams m. Oct. 26, 1757, Anna Warren, dau. of John 
and Zipporah Warren. He moved to Chester about 1774, where his 
last children were born, and where he probably died. 

Anna, b. July 13, 1758 ; d- June 26, 1763. 

Ephraim, b. Nov. 18, 1759. 27 John, b. Jan. 23, 1761. 

Larkin, b. Oct. 8, 1765. 

Louisa, b. Sept. 7, 17()7; m. Feb. 10, 1791, Stephen Hudson. 

George, h. March 23, 1769; d. at Newfane, Vt. 

Anna, b. Dec. 17, 1773. 

William H., b. ; he settled in Newfane, Vt., and gave the name 

of " Williamsville " to the place of his residence. 



William Williams m. Nov. 19, 1761, Betty McPherson. 

\Thomas, b. June 17, 1762; m. Mary Ball. 
Abraham, b. Dec. 29, 1763; m. 1785, Lydia Bigelow. 
Elizabeth, b. Jan. 2, 1766. .36 Mary, b. Dec. 30, 1773. 



471 



7-17- ] George Williams m. 1759, Mary McPherson, and had Catharine, 
lb. June 13. 17G0, in. Nov. II, 1783, Silas Gates; and Lucrecc. h. 
Nov. ;», 17()2, m. Feb. '^5, 1781, Samuel Gates. Capt. George Wil- 
liams d. June 2, 1813, aged 77. 



Thomas Williams m. Mary Ball, and had Elizabeth, h. June 22, 
1784; Mart/ B., b. April 4, 178G; Catharine, b. May 3, 1789; JVewell, 
b. July 13," 1791 ; Louisa B., b. Aug. 3, 1793, ni. 1828, Benjamin B. 
Hammond; William McP., h. Aug. 16, 1796. He d. May 3, 1833, 
aged 70 years. 



There was a William Williams early in Marl, who may have 
been a connection of Abraham, and Avho by his wife Elizabeth, had 
two sons, as by record. Thomas, b. Sept. 10, 1692; and Mraliam, b. 
April 15, 169-. Genealogy not traceable. 



There was another family of Williamses which came into town later, 
i whose ancestry is not ascertained. 

Joseph Williams m. Lydia , and had a numerous family. 

She probably died, and he m. May 28, 1766, Zeruiah Johnson. 

Lnidia, b. Nov. 10, 1741 ; m. Sept. 23, 17(i2, Moses Woods. 
\Joseph, b. June 3, 1745 ; m. April 1, 1766, Anna Stow. 
James, b. April 15, 1747; m. Dec. 2, 1762, Abigail Ward. 
William, b. Dec. 6. 1748: moved to Wendell. 
Eunice, b. March 15, 1751 ; m. April 3, 1771, Elisha Rice. 

Luc}!, b. May 30, 1753 ; m. Russell. ? 

Sarah, b. March 13, 1755; m. May 22, 1777, William Loring. 
Moses, b. Aug. 3, 1757 ; resided in South., and was remarkable for 

size, weighing nearly 400. 
Patte, b. Nov. 20, 1759 ; m. April 30, 1780, Nathaniel P. Russell. 



Joseph Williams m. April 1, 1766, Anna Stow, dau. of Samuel 
and Rebecca (Howe) Stow, b. Jan. 8, 1749. 

Samuel, b. Sept. 28, 1766 ; m. Sept. 8, 1790, Phebe Rice, dau. of 

Benj. 
\Stephen,h. May 31, 1769 ; m. 1799, Sally Estabrook. 
Lydia, b. May 13, 1773 ; m. May 1, 1800, John Howe, 3d. 
f Daniel, b. Oct. 29, 1775 ; m. March 11, 1804, Mary Stow; d. 1810. 
f Joseph, b. May 7, 1779 ; m. Jan. 3, 1803, Mary Freeman, of South. 
.^niia, b. Oct. 15, 1781 ; d. Oct. 30, 1804, aged 23, unm. 
Rebecca, b. Nov. 14, 1783; d. unm. 18 Lua/, b. Aug. 1, 1790. 



Stephen Williams m. 1799, Sally Estabrook. He d. 1848. 

George, b. Sept. 29, 1800 ; m. March 24, 1823, Betsey Temple. 
Harriet, h. June 5, 1805; m. May 31, 1827, John Loring. 
Samuel S., b. May 26, 1813. 22 Daniel E., b. Dec. 22, 1815. 



Daniel Williams m. March 11, 1804, Mary Stow, dau. of John 
and Grace (Newton) Stow. He d. Oct. 15, 1810. 

John, b. Sept. 25, 1804 ; m. June, 1831, Ruth Travis. 

Caroline, b. Jan. 27, 1808; d. Oct. 4, 1830. 

Mary. b. Mav 27, 1811 ; m. Nov. 13, 1832, Jacob Fairbanks. 



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Joseph Williams m. Jan. 3, 1803, Mary Freeman, and had Mary, 
b. April 13, 1803; Anna, b. June 30, J804; Daniel, b. March 1, 
1811; Joseph, b. Feb. 5, 1814. 



WILSON. — John Wilson and Edward were probably brothers, 
b. in Newton about 1690, children of Nathaniel, b. 1668, and Hannah 
(Oliver) Wilson, son of Nathaniel, of Roxbury, b. 1622, and d. 1692, 
aged 70. 



Edward Wilson m. 1st, Hopestill Ward; she d. J731, and he m. 
2d, Margaret Angier. He d. 1759. He had 2 children by his first 
wife, and 3 by his last, viz., Benjamin, b. April 30, 1728 ; Abigail, b. 
June 5, 1729 ; Edward, b. July 12, 1733 ; Susanna, b. Dec. 18, 1735 ; 
Elizabeth, b. Feb. 21, 1738. 



John Wilson, by wife Jane 
and Johji, b. Dec. 3, 1732. 



-, had Jane, b. March 18, 1731, 



William Wilson, by wife Elizabeth, had Polly R., b. Aug. 2, 
1807; William, b. Oct. 13, 1811; Leonard, b. Jan. 10, 1813; Eliza- 
beth, b. Nov. 29, 1814; Sarah C\, b. Aug. 22, 1817; Charles F.,h. 
Sept. 21, 1819 ; Susan P., b. April 19, 1823. 



WINCHESTER.— Caleb Winchester m. 1761, Anna Smith, 
and had Rufus, b. Nov. 12, 1762, d. young; Mary, b. 1765, d. young ; 
Caleb, b. Oct. 5, 1771 ; Rufus, b. March 8, 1774 ; Stephen, b. Jan. 11, 
1776; Samxiel, b. Oct. 10, 1778 ; WiUiam, b. Jan. 31, 1783. 

Samuel Winchester, son of Caleb, m. 1811, Sarah Farwell, and 
had 13 children — three at one birth, in 1822, and two at another, in 
1824. 

This family probably descended from John Winchester, of Muddy 
River, (Brighton,) who d. April 25, 1694, aged fourscore and up- 
wards. 



THE WITHERBEE FAMILY. 

John Witherbee, of Sud. and Marl., by his wife Mary had several 
children whose births are recorded. 

^Joseph, h. Sept. 18, 1672 ; m. Elizabeth Johnson. 

John, b. March 26, 1675. 

\Thomas, b. Jan. 5, 1678 ; m. Feb. 20, 1699, Hannah Woods. 



Joseph Witherbee m. Feb. 9, 1699, Elizabeth Johnson, 
moved to Framingham, where he was constable in 1712. 

Caleb, b. Jan. 5, 1701 ; m. Jan. 12, 1726, Joanna Wheeler. 
Thankful, h. May 10, 1703 ; m. Sept. 14, 1725, Isaac Bellows. 
Joseph, b. Feb. 20, 1704; m. June 2, 1730, Unity Amsden. 
Hepzibah, b. Feb. 14, 1706; m. Nov. 16, 1727, Robert Sennet. 
Deborah, b. Dec. 23, 1709. 
Elizabeth, b. Sept. 16, 1714 ; m. Dec. 3, 1741, Nathan Rice. 



He 



473 



Thomas Witherbee m. Feb. 20, 1G99, Hannah Woods, dan. of 
John and Lydia Woods. lie d. Jan, 23, 1713, aged 35, and she m. 
Aug. 8, 1716, Moses Leonard. 



Mary, h. June 10, 1700. 

Thomas, b. March 4, 1705. 

Silas, b. July 20, 1707 ; m. Thankful 

Submit, h. March 9, 1710. 



12 Hannah, b. June 3, 1702. 



settled in Grafton. 



The Witherbees have been somewhat numerous in Stow, South., 
and Shrewsbury ; probably all from the same stock. 

Caleb Witherbee, b. in South., April 3, 1779, was son of Zac- 
cheus. He m. Sept. G, 1801, Hepzibah Brigham, b. in South., May 
7, 1781, dau. of Elijah Brigham. He came to Marl, in 1806, where 
he spent his days, and d. Jan. 3, 1853, aged 74. 

Jahtz S., b. Sept. 12, 1802 ; m. June 1, 1826, Harriet Brigham, dau. of 
Capt. Daniel. He is a prominent citizen, has filled important town 
offices, and is a justice of the peace. He resides at the old Wil- 
liams Tavern Stand, by the Pond. 

Elijah B., b. July 19, 1804; m. 1829, Louisa Brigham, dau. of Abner, 
moved to Mich., and d. at Flint, Feb. 26, 1847. 

J^Tanaj M, b. Dec. 3, 1806 ; d. Nov. 11, 1807. 

J^'ancy M., b. Oct. 19, 1808 ; d. Nov. 21, 1829, unm. 

Xahum, b. April 12, 1811 ; m. April 30, 1835. 

Dennis, b. July 25, 1813; m. May 20, 1835, Charlotte Stevens; d. 
1857. 

John B., b. June 10, 1816. 

Sarah B., b. Oct. 26, 1818 ; d. Sept. 27, 1840. 

Hilliam Wallace, b. Feb. 21, 1821 ; m. 1845, Elizabeth G. Brigham. 



THE WITT FAMILY. 

The Record of the Witt family is very imperfect. I have been 
able to glean only the following : 

John Witt was in Lynn in 1640. He had two wives, and d. 1775, 
leaving several dau. and at least two sons. 

\John, b. ; m. Elizabeth Baker. 

Thomas, b. ; m. Feb. 26, 1675, Bethia Potter. 



John Witt m. Jan. 14, 1676, Elizabeth Baker. They resided in 
Lynn, where their children were born, a part only of whom are re- 
corded. The following were their children. 

Elizabeth, b. 1677. 

fJo/m, b. June 3, 1679 ; m. Mary . 6 Mary, b. Aug. 14, 1681. 

\Jonathan, b. ; m. in Marl, Lydia Matthews. 

\Samuel, b. ; m. 1st, Elizabeth Breed, and 2d, Susanna Pierce. 

\Thjomas, b. ; m. Martha Wood. 



John Witt m. Mary . He probably came to Marl, about 

1707. We have no record of his death, though the settlement of his 
estate fixes the time at 1743. His will, dated March 16, 1741, and 



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proved May 16, 1743, mentions wife Mary, sons William, Elias, Jo- 
seph, John and Ebenezer, and dau. Mary Dike, and Elizabeth, and 
grand dau. Rebecca Goodale. He settled on the Indian Plantation 
in the north-easterly part of the town, where his descendants have 
always remained. 

William, b. May 13, 1708 ; no further record. 

Mai^y, b. July 29, 1710; m. Sept. 26, 1734, Daniel Dike. 

\Elias, b. June 31, 1714; m. March 31, 1742, Elizabeth Marble. 

Rebecca, b. Feb. 2, 1715; m. Jan. 17, 1733, Eleazer Goodale, of Sutton. 

Joseph, b. Sept. 11, 1718 ; no further record. 

Dnvid, b. April 11, 1720; m. Sarah , and had Thomas, b. Sept. 

11, 1745. 
\Ebenezei; bap. June 22, 1722 ; m. Lydia Woodbury. 
Elizabeth, b. ; m. Benoni Bayley ? 18 John, b. . 



Jonathan Witt m. Feb. 8, 1713, Lydia Matthews, dau. of John 
and Lydia. He resided in the south part of the town, and was set off 
with Southborough, and hence we have no full record of the family in 
Marl. His children recorded in Marl, were Man/, b. Sept. 17, 1715 ; 
Jonathan, b. April 29, 1718 ; Oliver, b. Oct. 26, 1720 ; David, b. April 
9, 1723 ; Sarah, b. March 26, 1727. 



Samuel Witt m. 1716, Elizabeth Breed, who d. May 22, 1754 ; 
and he m. Mrs. Susanna (Marrett) Pierce, wid. of Samuel Pierce. He 
d. Sept. 29, 1779. She d. April 25, 1789. He was a prominent man 
in the town, and represented Marl, in the General Court twenty- 
three years, and hence was generally known by the appellation of 
" Deputy." 

\Samuel, b. March 24, 1718 ; m. Sarah Goodale. 

Abigail, b. July 6, 1721 ; m. Jan. 27, 1748, Jason Bigelow, and resided 

in North Brookfield. 
\Josiah, b. March 26, 1724 ; m. Elizabeth Eames. 



Thomas Witt m. 1719, Martha Wood. He d. before 1739, and 
Samuel was appointed guardian of two of his children. He had 
Martha, bap. Sept. 11, 1723; Elizabeth, bap. June 9, 1725; Josiah, 
bap. Dec. 20, 1726; Hannah, bap. Aug. 7, 1728; Mary. His wid. 
settled his estate. She m. again, and moved to Goshen, Ct. 



Elias Witt m. March 31, 1742, Elizabeth Marble. He served 
in several campaigns in the French and Indian wars. He had six chil- 
dren, viz. Jllpheus, b. June 23, 1742; Olive, b. Sept. 3, 1744, m. 1778, 
Joseph Longbridge; Elias, b. July 2, 1746; Zaccheus, b. Jan. 1, 1749 ; 
Elizabeth, b. Jan. 7, 1751 ; Sybil, b. Dec. 7, 1753, d. Feb. 16, 1755. 



Ebenezkr Witt m. Jan. 7, 1747, Lydia Woodbury, of Wenham, 
and moved to Oxford ; he d. and his brother-in-law Dike, administered 
upon his estate, 1760. He had in Marl. Sarah, b. April 12, 1750 ; 
J^aomi, b. April 26, 1751, m. Reuben Lamson ; Lydia, b. Sept. 26, 
1755. He may have had other children in Oxford. His family proba- 
bly took the name of De Witt. 

Samuel Witt m. at the advanced age of 63, Sarah Goodale. 
He had no children. His will, dated 1789, and proved Oct. 12, 1791, 
mentions sister Abigail Bigelow, brother Josiah, and nephew Samuel 
Witt, Jr., whom he brought up. He held a commission of captain. 



475 



?-21- ! JosiAH Witt m. May 30, 1751, Elizabeth Eames. She d. Nov. 4, 
; 179;}. His will, dated June 7, 1803, mentions sons Ebenezer, Silas, 
Samuel, Josiah, and John, and dau. Elizabeth Randall, Mary, and 
Susanna. 

jEbcnezer, b. Oct. 23, 1755; m. Sarah Goodnow. 

Silas, b. Dec. 16, 1758; m. March 12, 1801, Catharine Dexter; and 
had Catharine, b. June 10, 1805, who m. 1st, John Y. Tenny, and 
2d, Emerson Spofford, of Berlin. Silas Witt d. 1813. 

Mary, b. Sept. 25, 1759 ; d. April, 1830, unm., aged 71. 

\Samuel, b. Nov. 18, 17G3; m. Oct. 30, 1787, Lucy Adams. 

Susanna, b. Dec. 12, 17G9; m. Dr. John Hunter, of Henniker, N. H. 

Josiah, b. ; m. 178(5, Sarah Swan, of Stow, and moved to Brook- 
field. 

John, b. ; m. Anna Bayley, of Stow. 

Elizabeth, b. ; m. Silas Randall, and resided in Stow. 

There is no record of the birth of the three last-named children. 



Ebenezer Witt m. Oct. 23, 1785, Sarah Goodnow, of Stow. He 
d. 1840, aged 85 years. He resided at Feltonville. She d. Feb. 4, 
1837. 

Marif, b. July 17, 1787 ; m. July 27, 1803, Thomas Hapgood, and had 

Elvira, b. Nov. 9, 1803, d. young ; Ira, b. Jan. 17, 1805 ; Elvira, b. 

Sept. 15, 180(5; Gilman, b. Feb. 1, 1809; Mary .^inn, b. July 20, 

1813 ; Harriet, b. Jan. 4, 1817 ; If'illiam George, b. Dec. 2, 1819 ; 

Thomas E., b. May 11, 1824. 
Elizabeth, b. Nov. 24, 1790 ; m. March 7, 1808, Abner C. Dunn. They 

had Daniel W., b. Oct. 20, 1808 ; William G., b. Sept. 18, 1813 ; 

Abner C, b. May 2, 1817; Ebenezer W., b. Oct. 4, 182,3, and six 

daughters. 
Sarah, b. June 22, 1794; m. March 28, 181(5, Lewis Howe, and had 

Lewis, b. 1817, and Marij A., b. 1818. 
Ebenezer, b. May 1 1, 1797 ; m. Sept. 2(5, 1822, Adaline Bigelow, dau. 

of William Bigelow, and had John Y., b. 1823 ; George D., b. 182G ; 

Charles E., b. 1828 ; Francis E., b. 1830, and three daughters. 



Samuel Witt m. Oct. 30, 1787, Lucy Adams, of Acton. He d. 

May 30, 1847, aged 84. She d. July 7, 1847, aged 88. 

Samuel, b. Dec. 9, 1791 ; m. Sarah Eaton, of Framingham, and moved 

to Shrewsbury ; is a deacon there, and had his name changed to 

De Witt. 
Solomon, b. Dec. 11, 1793 ; d. Feb. 7, 1800. 
Charles, b. Nov. 17, 1795 ; he went to Georgia, where he settled, and 

has been Judge of Probate and of the Common Pleas Court. 
Divight, b. Sept. 22, 1797 ; m. Abigail Estabrook, of Paxton, April 19, 

1826. She d. Oct. 10, 1857. He has had a family of ten children. 
Susan, b. May 25, 1800; m. Joseph Bayley ; resides in W. Newbury. 



There have been other Witts in Marl., which I am not able to trace. 

Isaiah Witt m. Feb. 28, 1748, Deborah Stewart, and had Martha, 
b. Aug. 6, 1748, and Artemas, b. Aug. 13, 1750. 



Asa Witt m. Lydia Woods, and had Asa, b. Nov. 17, 1802, and 
three others, who d. young. 
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THE WOOD FAMILY. 

William Wood came to this country in 1G38, and d. in Concord, 
1G71, leaving an only son. He may have been the William Wood 
who was the Author of "New England's Prospects," printed in Lon- 
don, 1G34, though it is hardly probable. 

Michael Wood, b. ; d. in Concord, May 13, 1674. His wife's 

name I have not learned. He left several children. 



Ahignil, b. 1672. 

Ahruham, b, ; and rem'd to Sudbury, where he had a large family. 

Isaac, b. ; m. and had a family in Concord. 

Ilwmpson, b. . 

\ Jacob, b. March 8, 1662 ; m. Mary Wheeler. 
John, b. ; m. and had John, b. 1680. 



Jacob Wood m. Mary Wheeler, and had a family of children. 

Ephraim, b. Feb. 4, 1702 ; m. Mary Buss, and had, in Concord, 
several sons, and probably daughters. He d. 1789. 

Oliver, b. 1730. 11 Ephraim, b. 17.33. 12 Amos, b. 1737. 

\Ptler, b. June 23, 1740 ; m. Nov. 22, 1764, Sybil Howe. 



Peter Wood m. Nov. 22, 1764, Sybil Howe, dau. of Thomas 
Howe, of Marl., b. May 1, 1740. He came to Marl, when a young 
man. In 1766, he purchased land of Joseph Williams, and resided 
many years thereon ; it being the late Ephraim Howe place. He be- 
came a prominent man in the town, and in the church. He d. March 
5, 1820, aged 79. He was commissioned 1783 by Gov. Hancock, as 
a magistrate, and for many years performed most of the business in 
that line in the place. She d. July 23, 1822, aged 81. 

Aaron, b. Dec. 18, 1765 ; d. young. 

Dorothy, b. Nov. .30, 1767 ; m. Abner Brigham ; d. July 6, 1854, a^t. 87. 

Thomas, b. March 27, 1770 ; m. 1792, Dorothy Sawin, moved to Canada. 

Martha, b. Feb. 14, 1772; m. 1796, James Henderson, of Northboro'. 

Anna, b. Nov. 8, 1773 ; m. 1791, Windsor Stratton. 

\Moses, b. Sept. 24, 1775; m. Rebecca Turner. 

\Jcdtdiah, b. May 16, 1777 ; m. Betsey Wilkins. 



Moses Wood m. Rebecca Turner. He d. Oct. 5, 1859, aged 84. 

Helona, b. Feb. 23, 1804 ; m. Sept. 19, 1833, Nathan Cooledge. 
Alma A., b. Feb. 19, 1806 ; m. April 17, 1823, Loring Cox. 
Amelia, b. June 1, 1813 ; d. Feb. 15, 1815. 
Frederick, b. Feb. 18, 1822; d. May 17, 1833. 



Jedediah Wood m. Sept. 6, 1801, Betsey Wilkins, dau. of Edward 
and Sarah Wilkins. She d. Oct. 7, 1855, aged 73. He resides at 
Feltonville, and for many years carried on the cloth-dressing business. 
He commanded a military company, has been a prominent citizen, 
and is still living, one of the oldest men in the place. 

William Henry, b. March 3, 1802 ; m. Nov. 5, 1826, Caroline Hender- 
son. He is a trader at Feltonville ; has been a colonel in the militia, 
is a justice of the peace, and has filled important town offices. 



477 



He resides on the spot where the first house in the village was 
probably erected, and where Robert Barnard and his son Joel re- 
sided and kept a public house. The site is in the fork of the roads 
in the midst of the village, and hence is in a commanding position. 
He has erected on the site a large building, containing a dwelling 
house, and a store, and from its size, architecture, and position, 
presents one of the most attractive objects in the business part of 
the village. The following is a view of the building. 




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28 
29 

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31 



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3 
4 
5 



Betsey, b. Jan. 25, 1804 ; ni. March 8, 1822, Samuel Arnold. 

Maria Louisa, b. March 22, 1810 ; d. July 13, 1813. 

Sophronia, b. May 17, 1812; d. Aug. 18, 182i). 

Elbridge G., b. Sept. 2, 1814; ni. 1st, Almira Bush, of Bolton; 2d, 

Sarah Priest, of Boxborough, and 3d, OUa Higgins, of Warwick. 
Alonzo, b. Aug. 17, 1817. 
Franklin, b. July 1, 1820; d. Sept. 13, 1824. 



THE WOODS FAMILY. 

Whether the name Wood and Woods were originally one, or not, the 
families in Marl, bearing these names, have a ditferent origin, and 
have always been distinct in town. 

John Woods, Sen., of Sudbury, was one of the petitioners for the 
township of Marl., shared in the first division of the land, and was one 
of the prominent men in the place. He was on the board of selectmen 
in 16()3, 't)4, and '()5 ; and was one of the early members of the church. 
His will, dated Nov. 2G, 1677, and proved March 8, 1G78, mentions sons, 
John, Isaac, and James, wife, father Parminter, and son-in-law, John 
Bellows. It is probable that he m. Mary Parminter, who d. Aug. 17, 
1690, aged 80 years. He had at least three sons and one daughter. 



Uohn, b. July 18, 1647; d. At)ril 5, 1716. 

\Isaac, b. ; d. July 18, 1720 ; was twice married. 

\Jumes, b. ; m. 1(578, Hopestill Ward ; d. 1718, aged 73. 

Mary, b. ; m. John Bellows, and d. Sept. 16, 1707. 



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John Woods m. Lydia . He d. April 5, 1716, aged 69. She 

d. Sept. 24, 1723. He was a man of some prominence, was elected 
deacon of Mr Brimsmead's church in 1704. 



\John, b. April 20, 1670 ; m. 1st, Martha , and 2d, Patience - 

Lydia, b. July 11, 1672. 

Hannah, b. Aug-. 4, 1677; m. Feb. 20, 1699, Thomas Witherbee. 

Joseph, b. May LO, 1680; d. young. 

Joseph, b. Sept. 5, 1682 ; d. Aug. 30, 1698. 

Sarah, b. April 23, 1685; m. March 29, 1710, Simon Gates. 

Silence, b. June 27, 1688. 

'[Benjamin, b. June 5, 1691 ; m. Aug. 9, 1717, Elizabeth Morse. 

James, b. Oct. 30, 1694. 



Isaac Woods m. Mary . She d. Feb. 3, 1689, and he m. May 

8, 1700, Mary Fairbanks, of Sherborn. He d. July 18, 1720. His 
will, dated June 8, 1720, mentions wife Mary, and dau. Mary and 
Elizabeth, by a former wife, and sons Isaac and Joseph, Charles and 
Solomon. 



Ephraim, b. March 14, 1685; d. Sept. 27, 1698. 

Mary, b. March 13, 1687 ; m. Abijah Bruce. 

Elizabeth, b. Feb. 1, 1689. 18 Isaac, b. April 11, 1701. 

Margaret, b. July 11, 1703; d. March 32, 1719. 

Joseph, b. Aug. 20, 1705. 21 Di7iah, b. Oct. 31, 1708. 

Bethia, b. Nov. 11, 1710; d. June 29, 1715. 

Charles, b. April 28, 1714. 24 Solomon, b. Oct. 12, 1717. 



James Woods m. May 22, 1678, Hopestill Ward, dau. of William 
and Elizabeth Ward, b. Feb. 24, 1646. He d. Aug. 7, 1718. She d. 
Dec. 23, 1718, aged 73. He was chosen deacon of the church, 1716. 
By her will his wife gave £5 to the church for the relief of its poor 
members. 



Bethia, b. Sept. 14, 1679 ; d. Dec. 12, 1695, unm. 

Mary, b. May 29, 1681 ; d. young, 

Mary, b. Feb. 5, 1683 ; d. young. 

Jaines, b. Oct. 11, 1685 ; d. in infancy. 

f James, b. Oct. 11, 1687; m. March 19, 1719, Dorothy Barnes. 



John Woods m. Martha 
about 1711, Patience . 



She d. April 1, 1697, and he m. 



\David, b. Jan. 5, 1696 ; m. Jan. 26, 1725, Ruth Johnson. 

John, b. March 28, 1697 ; d. 1699. 

Ephraim, b. May 5, 1712. 33 John, b. June 30, 1714. 



Benjamin Woods m. Aug. 8, 1717, Elizabeth Morse, dau. of Joseph 
and Grace, b. Jan. 4, 1700. His will, dated March 13, and proved 
April 12, 1758, furnishes the only date of his death. He was a lead- 
ing man in the town and church, and was one of his Majesty's mag- 
istrates. 

Elizabeth, b. March 28, 1719 ; m. Nov. 24, 1747, Samuel Brigham, Esq. 
Benjamin, b. Nov. 11, 1720 ;^grad. H. C. 1739; d. 1761. 
Fraiicis, b. Feb. 21, 1723. 37 Fortunatus, b. Feb. 13, 1725. 

\Alpheus, b. Feb. 28, 1727 ; m. 1st, Sept. 8, 1746, Millicent Howe, and 
2d, Sarah Bejit. 



479 



^nne, b. Sept. 3, 1729. 

Sarah, b. Sept. 2, 1731 ; m. 1755, Jona, Tainter. 

Catharine, b. April 4, 1733 ; m. Antipas Brigham. 

\John, b. Jan. 1, 173.5 ; m. May 29, 1704, Zeruiah Barnes. 

Lijdia, b. Oct. 17, 173(5 ; m. Feb. 7, 1754, Ebenezer Dexter. 

TimoUuj, b. Oct. 12, 1738; d. March 11, 1740. 



James Woods m. March 19, 1719, Dorothy Barnes. She d. Nov. 
10, 1734, aged 37, and he m. Jan. 20, 1730, Hepzibah Eager. She d. 
Dec. 31, 1708, aged 07. He was elected deacon, 1741. He d. April 
10, 1772. 

David, b. June 12, 1720; m. May 10, 1744, Martha Wheeler. 
James, b. Dec. 9, 1722; m. Nov. 5, 1747, Anna Stevens. 
Li/dia, h. Aug. 20, 1725; d. June 12, 1720. 

"■Jonathan, b. Dec. 19, 1728; m. Lydia . 

Hepzibah, b. Nov. 20, 1730; d. at Hardwick, 1787. 

Jhtron, b. March 20, 1738. 

\Moses, b. Nov. 0, 1739 ; m. Sept. 23, 17G2, Lydia Williams. 

George, b. Oct. 31, 1741 ; ra. Feb. 18, 1702, Mehitabel Stow. 

Dorothy, b. Oct. 15, 1743; m. Nov. 10, 17(J3, Stephen Rice. 

Lucy, b. Sept, 14, 1747 ; m. Dec. 16, 1773, Thomas Hapgood. 



David Woods m. Jan. 20, 1725, Ruth Johnson. 
David, b. Feb. 14, 1727. 



Alpheus Woods in. Sept. 8, 1740, Millicent Howe, dau. of Jona- 
than and Sarah Howe. She d. April 10, 1781, and he m. April 13, 
1784, Sarah Bent, who d. Feb. 10, 1825, aged 90. He d. Dec. 12, 1794. 



Sarajuh. Feb. 10, 1748. 

fUr^zabeth, b. Jan. 10, 1750; d. March 9, 1759. 

John Jfaldo, b. May 1, 1752. 

Caroline, b. Sept. 30, 1754 ; m. Nov. 17, 1778, James Smith. 

Matilda, b. Jan. 19, 1757 ; m. April 20, 1780, Asa Barnes. 

Lydia, b. April 5, 1759 ; m. Jan. 3, 1785, Asa Witt. 

yVilliam Henri/, b. July 25, 1701. 

Benjamin, b. "Nov. 24, 1703. 64 Samuel T., b. March 26, 1706. 

Daniel, b. Sept. 15, 1708; grad. H. C, 1795 ; d. at Roxbury, 1850. 

Elizabeth, b, April 2, 1771. 67 James G., b. May 23, 1773. 



John Woods m. May 29, 1764, Zeruiah Barnes. 



John, b. April 14, 1765. 
Edward, b. April 6, 1769. 



69 Elizabeth, b. Jan. 17, 1767. 



Jonathan Woods m. Lydia . 

Eunice, b. Sept. 7, 1749. 72 Relief, b. March 16, 1751. 



MosES Woods m. Sept. 23, 1702, Lydia Williams. She d. Aug. 
29, 1820, aged 80. He d. Jan. 14, 1821, aged 81. 

Mary, b. Dec. 19, 1762 ; m. May 3, 1783, John Dexter, Jr. 
Lydia, b. Sept. 18, 1765. 

Lucy, b. Dec. 19, 1774 ; m. June 24, 1809, John Maynard. 
Sarah, b. June 15, 1776 ; m. Jan., 1795, Joseph Brigham. 



480 

James, b. Nov. 7, 1779; m. July 9, 1809, Anna Bovd, and had Moses, 
b. Oct. 17, 1809; James E., b. Jan. 16, 1812; 'milium B., b. Feb. 
10, 1814; George E., b. April 17, 181(]; Lydia J}., h. July 5, 1818; 
Hejiry V., h. Feb. 19, 1821 ; Erastus S., b.Dec. 13, 1823. 

Elizabeth, b. March 5, 1788. 



WYMAN.— The name of Wyman appears a few times on the Marl. 
records. Two individuals of this name were in Charlestown in 1G40. 
Immediately after, John and Francis Wyman are found in VVoburn, 
where they married and had large families, and were probably the 
ancestors of most the Wymans in New England. JValhaniel Wyman 
and David Wyman, sons of Nathaniel, of Hopkinton, came to Marl, in 
1754, the former thirteen years of age, and the latter about eight. 
David m. Nov. 7, 1771, Lucy Brigham, dau. of Abraham and Phebe 
(Martin) Brigham. He probably removed to Marblehead. There is 
no record of their children in Marl. Subsequently they returned to 
Marl, where they both died, as appears by the obituary notices. 

Lucy Wyman, wife of David Wyman, d. June 8, 1835, aged 81. 
David Wyman, d. Feb. 3, 1838, aged 8(). 

Asenath Ifyman, (supposed to be the oldest child of the above,) d. Nov. 
21, 1857, aged 85; burnt to death. 



Note. — The multiplicity of figures in the foregoing genealogies, renders it 

next to impossible to avoid all errors, notwithstanding the utmost care of the 

Author and Printer. The following errors have been discovered, and are 

hereby corrected. 

Page 318, No. 60, for ' 1720,' read ' HTO.' 

" 318, No. 63, for • Hag^er,' read ' Kager.' 

" 321, No. 2, 2d, for ' 16^8,' read ' 1668.' 

" 331, No. 3-8-,for ' 1647,' read • 1747.' 

" 336, No. 51, for ' m. 1751,' read ' 17.i7.' 

" 3bS, No. 22, for ' Lucy Weeks,' read ' Marv Clark.' 

« 384, No. 12-39, for ' Dec. 6, 1711,' read ' 1721.' 

" 39a, No. 73, for ' d. Feb. 4, 1828,' read ' Sept. 5, 1851.' 

" 396, No. 138, for ' Gales,' read ' Gates.' 

" 416, No. 15, for ' Howe,' read ' Stow.' 

" 440, No. 214, for ' April 4,' read ' April 1.' 

" 464, No. 16, for 'Banker,' read ' Bowker.' 



INDEX TO THE GENEALOGIES. 



In the following Index, the names of the Families, which are arranged in alphabetical order, 
are printed in Small Capitals, and the page or pages occupied by each family, respectively, 
are set against them. The names which follow the families, and are arranged in alphabetical 
order, are of those, whether male or female, who have intormarried with some member of the 
family, and the figures set against their name refer to the consecutive number of each family, 
against which the name will be found. Names having more than one number against them, 
denote that different persons, of the same surname, married into the family. In a few instances, 
distinct families of the same name, have the same numbers. Hence both numbers should be 
consulted. Persons marrying those of the same surname are omitted in the index. 



Adams, p. 308 
Alcocke, 308 

Palsgrave. 
Alexander, 308 

Smith. 
Allen, 308 

Joslin, Loring, Weeks. 
Amsden, 308, 309 

Beaman, No. 3, 6 

Edward, 27 

Francis, 3 

Howe, 5, 23 

Martin, 3 

Morse, 26, 27 

Newton, 7 

Reed, 2 

Robinson, 25 

Rutter. 1 

Wetherby, 12 

AVheeler, 11 

Whitcomb, 26 

AXGIEK, 309 

Arnold, 309, 310 

Barnes, 2, 16, 17 

Bigelow, 10, 11 

Darling, 5 

Dunton, 23 

Gates, 3 

Hager, 6 

Hill, 7 

Howe, 18 

Huntington, 2.5 

Johnson, 13, 15 

Parminter, 19 

Rice, 3 

Tainter, 12 

Temple. 9 

Wood, 20 
AXTELL, 310, 311 

Barker, 3 

Hayden, 7, 8 

Newton, 2 

Badcock, 311 

Bains, 330 

Baker, 311 
Harris, 19 
Harwood, 2 



Hayden, 18 
Hill, 26 
Howe, 11 
Mann, 20 
Moulton, 3 
Osborn, 27 
Perry, 7 
Phelps, 24 
Putnam, 17 
Stow, 25 
Taylor, 8 
Temple, 22 
Wetherby, 15 

Banister, 312 

Barker, 6 

Barnes, 21 

Bigelow, 23 

Eager, 2 

Goodnow, 1 

Hayward, 6 

Holland, 13 

Hudson, 10 

Maynard, 11 

Park, 20 

Rich, 9 

Taylor, 8 
Barher, 312 

Crosby, Hapgood, 
Howe, Hanson. 
Barker, 313 

Walkut. 
Barnard, 313, 314 

Babcock, 35 

Bailey, 5, 10 

Bruce, 25, 28 

Eames, 31 

Gates, 27 

Goddard. 33 

Guliker, 21 

Howe, 2, 14, 22, 29, 36 

Kendall. 20 

Nurse, 12 

Osgood, 5 

Priest, 13 

Robinson, 32 

Russell, 16 

Stevens, 11, 18, 19 

Ward, 37 

Wheeler, 17 

Wilkins, 26 



Barnes, 314—319 
Arnold, 56, 90, 95 
Banister, 37 
Barce, 44 
Bent, 7 

Bigelow, 28, 85 
Bishop, 78 
Bowker, 33 
Brigham, 16, 22, 25, 

26, 46, 47, 48, 54, 

58 
Buckminster, 14 
Bush, 74 
Cranston, 16 
Crosby, 70 
Cunningham, 75 
Davis, 83 
Dix, 1, 2 
Eager, 12,63 
Felton, 63 
Forbush, 15 
Goodnow, 1 
Hapgood, 24, 86 
Hide, 3 
Hollister, 41 
Hosmer, 30, 32 
Howe, 2, 19, 45, 50, 57, 

65, 73, 76, 80, 102 
Johnson, 81 
Jones, 4 
Leonard, 20 
Merriam, 36 
Morse, 10 
Newton, 72 
Park, 64 
Potter, 82 
Proctor. 84 
Ray, 53 

Rice, 6, 15, 16, 23, 26 
Smith, 21 
Souther, 25 
Stevens, 18, 21, 39 
Stimpson, 3 
Stow, 66, 69 
Walker. 12 
Ward, 6 
Warren, 31 
Weeks, 7, 19. 52 
Woods, 11, 27, 42, 43 

Barstow, 320 / 

Howe. 



482 



Barkett, 321 
Bush, 5 
Howe, 3, 5 
Rice, 4 
Stow, 2 
Tailor, 7 
Tainter, 11 
Whitney, 9 
Bartlett, 320. 321 
Clisbee, 30, 31 
Howe, 3, 9, 28 
Joiner, 15 
Oaks, 21 
Prentiss, 2 
Saunders, 10 
Stratton, 13 
Bayley, 321, 322 
Howe, Stevens. 
Beaman, 322 

Amsden, 5 

Brigham, 11, 15 

Fay, 16 

Gates, 13 

Howe, 4, 9, 10 

Jewel, 14 

Loring, 17 

Parker, 12 

Rice, 6 

Williams, 2 

Beleoavs, 322, 323 
Burton, 7 
Eddy, 19, 21 
Gibbs, 33 
Gleason, 20 
Johnson, 3, 31 
Larkin, 17 
Maverick, 28 
Wheeler, 18 
Willis, 10 
Witherbee, 8 
Wood, 1 

Bent, 324, 325 
Barnes, 8 
Brigham, 27 
Fay, 19 
Howe, 1 
Rice, 1 
Walker, 24 
Woods, 18 
Bender, 325 
Barnard, 2 
Brigham, 1 
Curtis, 6 

Green, 5 

Greenough, 6 

Huntington, 6 

Sawyer, 10 
Bigeeow, 325—329 

Ames, 110 

Arnold, 62 

Banister, 46 

Barnes, 51, 87 

Bartlett, 88 

Bemis, 1 

Bond, 16 

Bowker, 23 

Brigham, 20, 22, 36, 
78, 112 

Bruce, 9 



Butler, 2 
CoUens. 76 
Dean, 60 
Dickinson, 115 
Eager, 53 
Eames, 61 
Felton, 109 
Flagg, 5, 6 
Garfield, 8 
Gibbon, 124 
Gleason, 10, 64 
Goddard, 39, 102 
Graves, 31 
Hager, 40 

Hapgood. 89, 101, 104 
Harrington, 62 
Hathron, 30 
Hemraenway, 32, 35 
Howe, 11, 19, 21, 25, 45 
56, 66, 77, 90, 93, 113 
117, 120 
Langdon, 28 
Lewis, 70 
Livermore, 12 
Matthews, 18 
Mead, 44 
Nichols, 121 
Pratt, 4 
Reed, 79 

Rice, 74, 111, 116, 123 
Sawyer, 106, 108 
Smith, 81 
Stearns, 17 
Stow, 118, 119 
Thomas, 27 
AVard, 29 
Warren, 1, 10, 15 
Weeks, 47, 59, 83 
Wilder, 66 
Witt, 34, 94 

Bond, 330 
Adams, 8 
Babcock, 2 
Biscoe. 

Chamberlain, 4 
Cooledge. 
Forbes. 
Hemenway, 6 
Lecain, 5 
Mahan, 7 
Rice, 1, 9 
Bowker, 330, 331 
Barnes. 
Bigelow, 2 

Eager, 5 

Forbush, 3 

Gates, 4 

Howe, 1, 7 

Rice, 6 

Weeks. 

Wheeler, 14 

Boyd, 331, 332 
Bennett, 18 
Bridge, 17 
Brigham, 7, 19 
Eames, 2 
Fales, 24 
Felton, 25 
63, Forbes, 2 
Glenn, 1 
Hitchcock, 15, 16 



Hunter, 2 
Morse, 5 
Phelps, 11 
Rice, 8 
Sumner, 12 
Tainter, 21 
Woods, 13 

Bradish, 332 

Rice. 
Breck, 332 
Gott, 3 
Parkman, 5 
Wainwright, 1 
Williams, 2 
Brigham, 332—345 
Allen, 89. 115, 286 
Arnold, 230 
Atkins, 294 
Babcock, 189, 282 
Baker, 2, 270 
Ball, 1, 122, 240 
Barnes, 105, 107, 112, 157, 
160, 1G7, 168, 179, 278, 
288 
Barrett, 243 
Bayley, 66, 187 
Beaman, 83 
Bent, 4, 113 
Bigelow, 50, 51, 80, 222, 

233, 265, 267, 300 
Bowker, 4, 19 
Boyd, 64, 159 
Bragg, 41, 62 
Bremer, 280 
Brown, 79, 315 
Bruce, 284 
Bullard, 301 
Cary, 232 
Chamberlain, 1 
Chase, 273 
Church, 48 
Collins, 123 
Crossman, 16 
Cunningham, 198 
Davis, 120 
Day, 224 
Dickenson, 269 
Eames, 199 
Fay, 10, 16, 126, 261, 293, 

312 
Felch, 305 
Felton, 300 
Fosgate, 297 
Fuller, 228 
Gates, 213, 246, 248 
Gil son, 253 
Gleason, 196, 242 
Goodnow, 15 
Gott, 59, 61, 125 
Graves, 149 
Hager, 36 
Hapgood, 314 
Haskell, 237 
Hawes, 129 
Hobart, 290 
Houghton, 14 
Howe, 6, 11, 17, 18, 25, 
26, 43. 63, 96, 102, 136, 
220, 254, 257, 260, 283, 
285, 299 
Hubbard, 7 



483 



Hudson, 121 

Hunt, 1 

Kurd, 1 

Ingraham, 27 

Jenks, 226 

Jewell, 3 

Johnson, 28 

Jones, 10!) 

Kendall, 26 

Keyes, 40 

Knowlton, 306 

Larkin, 251 

Lewis, 162 

Locker, 21 

Loomis, 13 

Mallard, 225, 287 

Marble, 116 

Martin, 71 

Maybee, 304 

Maynard, 22, 23, 56, 59, 

95, 114, 279,281 
Moore, 21, 24 
Morse, 3, 245, 263 
Munroe, 9 
Newton, 277 
Parke, 8 
Parker, 306 
Patch, 264 
Perry, 20, 256 
Peters, 29, 266 
Phelps, 19, 248 
Phillips. 124 
Pierce, 227 
Polly, 229 
Pope, 321 
Ilandall, 239, 318 
liice, 1, 3, 7, 15, 32, 38, 

45, 47, 49. 86, 150, 164, 

171, 176, 259, 319 
llobinson, 22 
Ilussell, 215, 221 
Safford, 132, 232 
Sawyer, 250 
Shattuck, 245 
Smith, 28 
Snow, 52, 106 
Spear, 292 
Stevens. 20, 97, 108, 170, 

244, 271 
Stone, 24 
Stow, 35, 181, 249 
Stratton, 33, 70, 93, 110, 

289, 317 
Sullivan, 305 
Switcher, 90 
Tainter, 101 
Thompson, 172 
Tomblin, 89 
Trowbridge, 218 
"Valentine, 296 
Wait, 127 
Walker, 23, 109 
-Ward, 13, 18, 51, 59, 73, 83 
Warren, 37, 74, 262 
Watson, 128 
Weeks, 68 
Wells, 5 
Wilkins, 155 
Willard, 39 
WilUams, 98 
Winslow, 291 
Witherbee, 255, 307 
62 



Wood, 65, 183 

Woods, 59. 77 
j Works, 235 

Wright, 197, 274 
I Wyman, 166 

j Britain, 346 

Brooks, 346 

Hapgood, Rice. 
Bro-wn, 346, 347 

Brigham, 8 

Bruce. 

Claice. 

Gould, 1 

Howe, 7 

Lee, 6 

Makepeace. 

Noyes, 5 

Weeks, 9 

Bruce. 347, 348 
Bowker, 7 
Brigham, 11 
Brown, 23 
Clisbee, 5 
Eager. 
Flagg, 3 
Joslin. 
Kendall, 2 
Nelson, 14 
Newton, 12 
Smith, 10, 12 
Wilkins, 4 
Woods, 3 

Bush, 349, 350 
Baker, 17 
Barrett, 1 
Brown, 28 
Eager, 24 
Fife, 29 
Howe, 5, 26 
Johnson, 8, 23 
Jones, 31 
Joslin, 4 
Kidder, 13 
Morse, 20 
Randall, 2 
Simonds, 36 
Tainter, 32 
Temple, 6, 41 
Wheeler. 
Wilder, 16 

Butler, 350 
Cady, 350 
Caldwell, 350 
Church, 350, 351 

Barnard, 6 

Brigham, 8 

Gates, 7 

Howe, 5, 12 

Maynard, 4 

Tucker, 9 

Ward, 14, 15 

Wilder, 2 
Clark, 351 

Colby, Eames, Eustis, 
Gould, Weeks. 

Cleasby, 351 
Howe. 



I Clemens, 351 

Cogs-well, 351 
Brown, 11 
Converse, 5 
Cole, 6 
Gibbon, 2 
Munroe, 4 
Sherman, 7 
Weld, 12 
Wilder, 10 

CoTTiNG, 351, 352 
Bradley, 5 
Brigham, 10 
Bruce, 7 
Hammett, 8 
Morse, 2 
Newton, 1 
Tattle, 9 

Cox, 352 

Bruce, Wilkins, Wood. 
Cranston, 352, 353 

Banister, 7 

Barnes, 3 

Brown, 1 

Dunn, 4, 14 

Dunton, 4 

Eager, 9 

Hathron, 5 

Howe, 15 

Nash, 13 

Phillips, 10 

Ward, 12 

Wilkins, 6 

Crosby, 353 

Morse. 
Cunningham, 353 

Brigham. 

Curtis, 353 
Dexter, 1 
Whitney, 1 

Darling, 353, 354 
Arnold, 9 
Bruce, 1 
Fairbanks, 12 
Flagg, 2 
Hager, 6 
Hapgood, 11 
Hayden, 9 
Howe, 9 
Hunting, 9 
Knights, 4 
Rice, 3, 5 -— 
Severy, 14 
Wilkins, 7 

Davis, 354 

Bowker, Ward. 
Dawson, 354 

Dexter, 354, 355 
Bowker, 2 
Colburn, 3 
Curtis, 1 
Howe, 1, 4 
Lowe, 2 
Witt. 2 
Woods, I, 4 
Woodward, 5 



484 



Eagek, 355—357 
Banister, 5 
Barnes, 15, 68 
Bigelow, 53 
Bowker, 10 
Brigham, 32 
Brown, 24 
Bruce, 72 
Bush, 55 
Clark, 62 
Cranston, 61 
Gates, 63 
Goodnow, 42, 51 
Harrington, 37 
Hill, 1 

Howe, 8, 21, 35 
Hunting, 70 
Johnson, 7, 20 
Kerley, 6 
Morse, 16. 85 
Newton. 56 
Rice, 17, 32, 82 
Russell, 89 
Sawyer. 83 
Stow, 45 
Stratton, 71 
Thomas, 11 
Walker, 60 
Ward, 14, 19 
Warren, 46 
Woods, 2, 33, 48 

Eames, 357—359 
Barnard, 30 
Bartlett, 13 
Bigelow, 28 
Boyd, 10 
Brigham. 12 
Brown, 23 
Childs, 26 
Clark, 22 
Cooledge, 24 
Forbush, 26 
Fosket, 7 
Harrington, 6 
Johnson. 
Keyes. 
Kinsman, 21 
Skinner, 3 
Ward. 
Weeks, 29 
Witt, 5 

Edwards, 359 
Goodnow. 

Fay, 359—361 
Barnes, 4 
Bartlett, 5 
Billings, 42 
Brigham, 1, 4, 5, 7, 7 
Child, 1, 13, 16, 19 
Clisbee, 8 
Collins, 1 
Converse, 24 
Felton, 4 
Goodnow, 15 
Howe, 1, 3 
Hudson, 1 
Larkin, 6 
Maury, 21 
Morse, 1 
Nurse, 20 



Pike, 29 
Pratt, 11 
Rice, 1, 45 
Shattuck, 1, 9, 22, 23 
Smith, 40 
Tomblin, 44 
Ward, 4, 8 
Wellington, 2 
Wood, 3 

Felton, 361—364 
Baker, 59, 63 
Barnes, 26 
Barrett, 4 
Bartlett, 29 
Bigelow, 31, 53 
Bliss, 64 
Brigham, 52, 57 
Cook, 51 
Fay, 26. 55 
Frye, 62 
Giles, 48 
Goodale, 3 
Hardy, 9, 13 
Holyoke, 31 
Howe, 4, 5, 6 
Hunt, 14, 23 
Hunter, 7 
Hunting, 37 
Manson, 50 
Maynard, 12 
Morse, 24 
Newton, 7 
Piper, 25 
Potter, 46 
Rice, 34 
Rogers, 8 
Stevens, 44 
Stewart, 51 
Stone, 47 
Stow, 10, 45, 65 
Tompkins, 2 
Weeks, 22, 33 
Wilkins, 32 
Wood, 30 

Forbush, 364, 365 
Bellows, 11 
Bowker, 7 
Byles, 5 
Forbes, 9 
Gold, 16 
Hardy, 12 
HoUoway, 9 
Houghton, 15 
Howard, 13 
Morse, 10 
Parkman, 26 
Perriman, 1 
Rediat, 1 
Rice, 3, 6 
Stewart. 

FOSGATE, 365 

Fosket, 365 

Foster, 365 

Franklin, 365 

Garfield, 365 

Gates, 366, 367 
Arnold, 24 
Ball, 21 



Beaman, 17 
Bragg, 13 
Brigham, 25, 30 
Church, 8 
Clark, 11 
Cushing, 22 
Dunton, 26 
Freeman, 3 
Goodnow, 20 
Holyoke, 16 
Howe, 7, 10, 20, 28 
Maynard, 5 
Newton, 32 
Phelps, 9, 25 
Rice, 29 
Stevens, 27 
Williams, 18, 19 
Woods, 6 
Woodward, 1 

GiBBS, 367 

Gibbon, 367 
Cogswell, 1 
Little, 6 
Perkins, 1, 5 
Wait, 10 
Wilson, 12 

Gleason, 367, 368 
Barrett, 1 
Bayley, 27 
Bigelow, 19 
Brigham, 13 
Brown, 28 
Dudley, 5 
Goodnow, 30 
Howe, 6, 18, 20, 22, 25, 

26, 31 
Oakes, 28, 29 
Phelps. 15 
Rice, 33 
Stow, 11 

GODDARD, 369 
Ball, 3 
Barker, 9 
Bowers, 6 
Collister, 7 
Cloyes, 1 
Davis. 
Houghton, 2 
Howe, 5 
Miles. 
Rice, 4, 12 
Stone, 8 
Walker, 10, 11 

Gold, 369 
Forbush. 
Golding, 369 

Goodale, 369—372 
Angier. 
Allen,'40 
Bailey, 37 
Bercham, 5 
Brigham, 18 
Bruce, 25 
Burnap, 37 
Eliot, 18 
Foote, 45 
Gary, 29, 31 
Harthorn, 24 






485 



Howe, 28, 41, 42 
Hunter, 48 
Moseman, 52 
Newton, 46 
Parkhurst, 55 
Sawyer, 33 
Stratton, 50, 51 
Tainter, 27 
Thurston, 57 
Ward, 36 
Warren, 54 
Weeks, 33 
Whitney, 22 
Winn, 35 
Witt, 16 

GooDENOW, 372, 373 
Banister, 13 
Barnes, 4 
Fay, 12 
Rice, 14, 15 
Roberts, 18 
Sanders, 20 
Wallis, 28 

GoTT, 373 
Breck, 1 
Brigham, 2, 3 
Ward, 1 

Gore, 373 

Gould, 373 

Green, 373 

Hager, 373, 374 
Ames, 8 
Arnold, 15 
Barnard, 3 
Barnes, 8 
Benjamin, 2 
Darling, 12 
Fairbanks, 17 
Farewell, 21 
Moore, 23, 26 
Morse, 8 
Nixon, 18 
Parminter, 20 
Sawyer, 7 
Stow, 4, 6 
Weeks, 25 

H.VGGiT, 374 

Maynard. 
H.VLE, 374 
Hall, 375 

Hapgood, 375 — 377 
Barber, 41 
Barnes, 18, 45 
Bigelow, 64 
Brooks, 13, 17 
Carr, 49 
Conant, 34 
Darling, 58 
Davis, 65 
Gibbs, 24 
Green, 63 
Howe, 21, 30, 55 
Hutchins, 9 
Jackson, 29 
Kentfield, 35 
Maynard, 56. 60 
Morse, 11 



Munroe, 22 
Nurse, 19 
Osborn, 62 
Priest, 61 
Ray, 66 
Rice, 23, 40, 54 
Stearns, 39 
Stevens, 22 
Taylor, 7. 8 
Temple, 31 
Treadway, 1 
Turner, 33 
Ward, 2 
Wesson, 59 
Wheeler, 5 
Whitman, 32 
Whitney, 51 
AVillis. 43 
Witt, 50 
Woods, 28 

Harrington, 377, 378 
Ball, 7 
Brigham, 10 
Eager, 5 
Fay, 19 
Garfield, 2 
George, 1 
Hayden, 4 
Howe, 11, 21 
Mills, 6 
Mixer, 13 
Warren, 3 
Whitney, 2 

Hauthorn, 378, 379 
Cranston, 6 
Cutler, 7 
Gates, 5 
Goodale, 1 
Howe, 5 
Stevens, 1 

Hayden, 379 

Newton, Winch. 
Hemenway, 379 
Hinds, 379 

Morse. 
Holden, 379 
Holland, 380 

HOLYOKE, 380 

Felton, 4 

Gates, 1 

Howe, 4, 10, 11 
Horn, 380 

Maynard. 

HOSMER, 380 

John Howe, 380—392 
Adams, 148 
Amsden, 22, 57 
Arnold, 296, 306 
Bailey, 36 
Baker, 89. 124 
Balcom, 313 
Barnard, 135, 197, 335 
Barnes, 106, 110,186,281, 
Baron, 9 
Barrett, 41 
Bartlett, 35, 92 
Beaman, 42, 98, 102 



Bennett, 64 

Bent, 3 

Bigelow, 26, 44, 47, 174, 

313, 329 
Bowker, 28, 39 
Boyd, 270 

Brigham, 31, 200. 228, 
255, 261, 314, 327, 328, 
331 
Brown, 247 
Bruce, 246, 280 
Burnet, 190 
Burnham, 230 
Bush, 43 
Cady, 23 

Chamberlain, 195 
Clark, 271 
Clifford, 100 
Clisbee, 325 
Crosby, 103 
Cutter, 278 
Dalrymple, 285 
Daniels, 241 
Davis, 62 
Dexter, 204 
Dunlap, 185 
Eager, 29 
Fairbanks, 127 
Fay, 2.56 
Felton, 95, 99 
Gale, 307 
Garfield, 21 
Gassett, 192 
Gates, 30, 198, 204 
Gleason, 96, 188, 237, 326 
Goddard, 258 
Goodale. 69, 166 
Goodnow, 85 
Hapgood, 108, 177, 279 
Harrington. 269 
Harthorn, 119 
Hayden, 247 
Haynes, 7 
Hoar, 90 
Hosmer, 9 
Hudson, 253 
Hunt, 199 
Jones, 209 
Keyes, 15 
Leland, 94 
Mann, 243 
Marble, 26 

Maynard,58, 138, 195,312 
Moore, 245 
Morse, 50, 202, 254 
Newton, 130, 334 
Onthank, 247 
Page, 244 
Parker, 220 
Peters, 304 
Perry, 53 
Prescott, 7 
Rice, 20, 40, 45, 49, 83. 

139, 181. 203, 283 
Russell, 242 
Sawin, 231 
Sherman, 52 
•Sibley, 6 
Smith, 114, 118 
Stow, 120, 122, 257, 267 
Swinerton, 70 
Tainter, 175 



486 



Temple, 296, 298 
Ward, 4 
Warland, 236 
Watson, 111 
Wetherby, 8 
Wheeler, 113 
Wilder, 18 

Williams, 32, 121, 265 
Witt, 270 
Wood, 173 
Woods, 6 



Abraham Howe, 392-397 
Amsden, 20 
Baker, 149 
Barnard, 80 
Barnes, 50, 72, 87, 104 

142, 143 
Barrett, 7 
Barstow, 19 
Bigelow, 47, 48,98, 116, 

144 
Bowker, 3 
Brigham, 6, 22, 43, 9a, 

131, 150 
Brooks, 46 
Burnet, 46 
Church, 55 
Clisbee, 107 
Coats, 71 
Craaiston, 76 
Crosby, 137 
Cushing, 63 
Dadman, 96, 100 
Dana, 79 
Felton, 84 
Gates, 33, 138 
Gilbert, 161 
Gleason, 51, 82, 83, 99 
Goddard, 53 
Hapgood, 15 
Harrington, 54 
Holman, 43 
Holyoke, 129, 130 
Horn, 118, 124 
Houghton, 154, 155 
Huntington, 141 
Kendall, 158, 159 
Kerley, 2 
Lovering, 91, 94 
Martin, 4 
Maynard, 92, 93 
Morse, 75 
Newton, 105, 117 
Oakes, 67 
Parminter, 141 
Rice, 8, 23, 40, 44, 62, 74, 

157 
Buggies, 46 
Russell, 103 
Sawyer, 139 
Sherman, 78 
Smith, 39 

Stow, 77, 93, 127, 134 
Stratton, 10 
Tainter, 13, 102, 133 
Tileston, 66 
Toombs, 128 
Ward, 1, 12 
Warren, 49 
Webster, 88 
Wetherbee, 110 



Wheeler, 76, 90 
Whitcomb, 130 
WiUard, 42 
Withington, 135 
Woods, 35 
Hudson, 398—401 
Atherton, 10 
Babcock, 39 
Banister, 14 
Brigham, 37 
Cooledge, 51 
Fay, 47 
Goodnow, 38 
Goodwin, 33 
Howe, 38 
Maynard, 2 
I McAllister, 16 
Rider, 52 

Shurtleff. 53 
1 Smith, 55 

Waters, 3, 4 

Williams, 46 

Willis, 9 

Wood, 16 
HiiNTEK, 401, 402 

Felton, 2 

Goodale, 11 

Moore, 1, 6 

Newton, 4 

Temple, 8 

Walkup, 7 

Wetherbee, 6, 10 

Hunting, 402 
Barrows, 3 
Eager, 4 
Reed, 7 
Rice, 9 
Jewell, 403 
Cleveland, 10 
Giles, 7 
Howe, 4 
Maynard, 5 
Smith, 2 
Walcut, 4 
Johnson, 403—405 

Bellows. 51 

Bruce, 57, 61 

Bush, 42 

Crafts. 1 

Forbush, 37 

Green, 41 

Hedge, 25 

Holland, 26 

Joslin, 28 

Kerley,- 22 

Lamb, 9 

Matthews, 20, 50 

Maynard, 12 

Plympton, 3, 15 

Richardson, 27 

Stow, 39 

Ward, 2 

Wetherbee, 10 

Woods, 43 
Jones, 406 
Joslin, 406—408 
Bruce, 59, 60 
Bush, 31 
Carley, 49 



Church, 42 
Cleveland, 28 
Forbush, 27, 35 
Howe, 22 
Johnson, 33 
King, 5 
j Lamb, 23 
Moore, 58 
Newton, 24, 63 
Reed, 32 
Snow, 30, 34 

! Kerley, 408 

I Davis. 

j Eager, 2 

j Kuhn. 

I Rice, 3 

i Keyes, 409, 410 

I Blanford, 6 

Brigham, 12 

Eames, 11 

Flagg, 27 

Howe, 10 

Morse, 20 

Rand, 25 

Weeks, 22 

Wilder, 30 

Kidder, 410 

Bush. 
Knap, 410 

Ward. 
Knights, 410 
Lee, 410 
Lennard, 410 

Newton. 
LORING, 410, 411 

Allen, 14 

Beaman, 7 

Clisby, 17 

Hastings, 16 

Heyman, 1 

Hitchcock. 

Howe, 9 

Newton, 13 

Nurse, 11 

Tainter, 8 

Viles. 

Wilkins. 

Williams, 8, 15 

Woods, 2 

[Lyscom, 411 

Mann, 411 
'Manson, 411 
j Felton, Sawin, Stow. 

I Marble, 411 

I Witt. 

I Martin, 412 

Amsden. 

Church. 

Gove. 

Stevens. 
Mason, 412 

Matthews, 412 
Bigelow, 4 
Garfield, 1 
Johnson, 1 



487 



Morse, 5 
Munroe, 10 
Rice, 12 

M.VTNARD, 413—415 

Balcom, 28 
Barnes, 53 
Belcher, 43 
Borden, 61 
Brigham, 13, 46, 59 
Church, 23 
Crosby, 22 
Falkner, 27 
Gates, 1 
Haggate, 11 
Hapgood, 87 
Hayden, 65 
Horn, 24 
Howe, 21, 41, 82 
Jewell, 51, 79 
Johnson, 10 
Mills, 76 
Morse, 15 
Peters, 77, 83 
Priest, 52, 107 
Prue, 12 
Rogers, 42 
Sergeant, 58 
Smith, 76 
Stow, 74, 76 
Tainter, 44 
Walcut, 81 
Ward, 5 
Weeks, 84 
Whipple, 40 
Wilkins, 108 

Mixer, 415 
Garfield. 
Gibbs. 
Newton. 
Lamb. 

MooKE, 416 

Morris, 416 

Morse, 416—420 
Amsden, 86 
Austin, 97 
Baker, 23 
Barnard, 13 
Barnes, 16, 109 
Bartlett, 1 
Belcher, 97 
Bigelow, 100 
Boyd, 53 

Brigham, 51, 89, 90, 97 
Brown, 107 
BuUard, 5 
Church, 15 
Cooper, 6 
Cotting, 73 
Crosby, 78 
Eager, 20, 77 
Fay, 2, 108 
Felton, 79 
Forbush, 24 
Gilmer, 6b 
Green, 62 
Hager, 85 
Hale, 103 
Hapgood, 33 
Hayden, 76 



Hinds, 17 

Howe, 1, 2, 35, 49, 66, 67 

Hunter, 99 

Johnson, 30 

Joslin, 10 

Kendall, 78 

Keyes, 21, 32 

Matthews, 29 

Maynard, 18 

Moore, 65 

Newton, 14, 23, 39, 56, 84, 

104 
Phelps, 70 
Pierce, 1 
Pike, 68 
Putter, 80 
Rice, 3, 47 
Robbins, 36 
Shattuck, 2, 4, 44 
Sherman, 01 
Smith, 3 
Stearns, 3 
Stevens, 50 

Stow, 15, 45, 46, 80, 83, 100 
Stratton, 71 
Temple, 48, 107 
Thomas, 42 
Thompson, 92 
Ward, 49 
Warner, 11 
Warren, 91 
Wheeler, 59 
Whitney, 105 
Wilson, 93, 94 
Woods, 19 
Woodward, 7 

MOSEMAX, 420 

Munroe, 420 

Newton, 421 — 426 
Adams, 6 
Allen, 81 

Amsden, 46 f 

Axtell, 10 
j Balcom, 31 
Brigham, 30 
Brooks, 3 
Bruce, 56, 146 
Burnham. 171 
Cutler, 183 
Eager, 11, 161 
Fames, 48 
Felton, 4 
Garfield, 69 
Goodale, 13, 165 
Greely, 23 
Howe, 1, 17, 71 
Joslin, 3, 23 
Knapp, 33 
Larkin, 2, 3, 27 
Lenard, 24 
Lenardson, 18, 20 
Marble, 163 
Morse, 5, 7, 8, 41, 149 
Orcutt, 19 
Parkhurst, 43 
Rice, 21, 49, 58 
Ripley, 36 
Rugg, 14 
Smith, 47 
Stow, 2, 130, 150 



Taint, 128 
Taylor, 42 
Tomblin, 62, 72 
Tozer, 4') 
AVard, 12 
Watts, 160 
Weeks, 5 
Wilson, 63 
Wright, 116 

Oakes, 426 
Fay, 4 
Hollo way, 1 
Maynard, 5, 6 
Rediat, 1 

Packard, 426, 427 
Blake, 16 
Carter, 17 
Hooker. 15 
Howard, 2 
Lathrop, 3 
Perkins, 4 
Quiney, 8 
Richards. 11 
Stowell, 10 
Thayer, 12 
Trask, 18 

Parker, 427 

Beaman. 
Parminter, 428 
Perry, 428 
Percival, 428 

Peters, 428 

Maynard. 
Phelps, 428, 429 

Allen, 6 

Atwood, 5 

Brigham, 4, 8 

Boyd, 3 

Dudley, 13 

(lates, 4 

Gleason, 15 

Goodnow, 16 

McBride, 12 

Morse. 

Rice, 1, 10 

Russell. 12 

AVard, 6 

AV'arland, 9 

Wilson, 4 

Potter, 429, 430 
Angier, 1 
Bruce, 2 
Stone, 7 
Walker, 8 
Walkup, 9 

Pratt, 430 

Fay. 
Prescott, 430 

Ward. 
Priest, 430 

Bruce, 12 

Eaton. 

Jones, 9 

Longley, 9 

Whitcomb, 6 

Wilkins, 10 



488 



Ray, 430 

Rediat, 430 

Miles. 

Reed, 430 

Rice, 431—441 
Adams, 29 
Albee, 273 
Alden, 274 
Allen, 33 
Bailey, 161 
Baker, 145 
Banister, 112 
Barnes, 111, 212, 231 
Barrett, 72, 78 
Bartlett, 208, 232 
Beaman, 123 
Beers».8 
Bent, 3 

Bigelow, 80, 210, 216, 275 
Binney, 160 
Bond, 136, 229 
Bowker, 103 
Boyd, 230 

Brigham, 1, 73, 82, 125, 
161, 209,220.221,223, 
263 
Brown, 7, 10, 63 
Burnett, 144 
Burroughs, 244 
Bush, 214 
Carrico, 276 
Carruth, 206 
Cazneau, 179 
Clapp, 42 
Cooledge, 48 

Corey, 51 

Darling, 184, 191 

Derby, 54 

Drury, 5 

Eager, 105, 147 

Fairbanks, 44, 183 

Felton, 215 

Fletcher, 62 

Forbush, 21, 23 

Fosgate, 217 

Gates, 255 

Gerry, 12 

Gleason, 260 

Goddard, 178 

Goodnow, 94, 114, 117 

Goulding, 45 

Graves, 22 

Hapgood, 157, 227 

Hardy, 93 

Hastings, 194 

Hayden, 198 

Haynes, 31, 37 

Hersey, 270 

Hey wood, 110 

Hosmer, 7 

Howard, 112 

Howe, 27, 71, 76, 79, 119, 
151, 159, 165, 166, 178, 
234 

Hubbard, 38, 41 

Hunt, 1, 241 

Hunting, 253 

Jennings, 68 

Kerley, 51 

Killam. 



King, 7, 8 

Knights, 187 

Lamson, 6 

Lee, 218 

Maynard, 149, 207 

Matthews, 162 

Merrick, 67 

Moore, 2, 35, 140, 251 

Morse, 144, 182, 214 

Mutzenbeeker, 248 

Newton, 57, 77, 100 

Oakes, 83, 113 

Palfrey, 179 

Parker, 40 

Partridge. 81 

Payson, 129 

Perkins, 213 

Phelps, 222, 265. 268 

Robinson, 51, 106 

Russell, 16, 262 

Sawin. 

Seaver, 245 

Smith, 138 

Stevens. 240 

Stone, 13, 28, 32, 34, 53, 
148, 177 

Stow, 60, 272 

Taylor, 58, 146 

Ward, 17, 50, 137, 171 - 

Warren, 95 

Weeks, 170 

Wells, 11 

Wetherbee, 271 

Wheeler, 17, 84, 87 

White, 26 

Whitney, 235 

Whittemore, 152 

Willard, 56 

Williams, 172, 174, 224 

Wilson, 64 

Witherbee, 126 

Woolcot, 102 
Ripley, 441 
Robinson, 441 

Amsden. 
Ruddock, 441, 442 

Brimsmead. 
RuGG, 442 

Newton. 
Russell, 442 

Brigham, 3, 5 

Fay, 6 

Howe, 1 

Rice, 4 

Robinson, 1 

Williams, 1 
Sampson, 442 

Sawin, 442, 443 
Bigelow, 20 
Cotting, 4 
Fay, 20 
Howe, 2 
Jones, 20 
Moore, 4 
Munroe, 1 
Rice, 7 
Stratton, 17 
Temple, 8 
Wood, 9 



Saavyee, 443, 444 
George, 6 

Seaver, 444 

Rice, Weeks. 
Shattuck, 444 

Allen, 4 

Fairbanks, 11 

Jackson, 10 

Johnson, 9 

Morse, 6 

Newton, 4 

Parminter, 7 

Pease, 3 

Underwood, 3 

Whitney, 2 

Sherman, 444, 445 
Axtell, 26 
Bowman, 3 
Carr, 23 
Cogswell, 37 
Davis, 37 
Fairbanks, 31 
Fay, 28 
Frost, 37 
Hawkins, 4 
Howe, 34 
Knight, 35 
Livermore, 19 
Maynard, 30 
Parker, 31 
Parkhurst, 10 
Perrum, 21 
Porter, 1 
Shattuck, 16 
Temple, 24 
Wait, 33 
Winship, 7 

Smith, 446, 447 

Alexander, 3 

Barnes, 4 

Brown, 4 

Bruce, 6, 9 

Clough, 2 

Howe, 5 

Jewell, 3 

Maynard, 5 

Whitcomb, 10 
Snow, 447 

Joslin. 
Souther, 447 

Barnes. 

Stanly, 447 

Stevens, 447 — 450 
Bailey, 20 
Barnard, 15, 25 
Barnes, 19 
Brigham, 25, 26, 28, 29, 

40 
Dickerman, 3 
Felton, 2 
Gates, 41 
Hale, 37 
Hartwell, 39 
Haywood, 18, 36 
Hemenway, 17 
Holmes, 9 
Kendall, 34 
Martin, 9 



489 



Rice, 32, 35 
Robinson, 1 
Stow, 12 
Trowbridge, 38 
Warren, 27 
Weeks, 23 
Whipple, 6 
Wilder, 9, 11 
Willard, 4 
Witherbee, 40 
Woods, 21 
Wright, 21 

Stewart, 450 
Adams, 11 
Ayers, 13 
Parminter, 7 
Witt, 3, 8 

Stone, 450 

Stow, 450—454 
Bailey, 67 
Baker, 60 
Barnes, 69, 70 
Brigham, 16. 68, 82, 89 
Brown, 52, 81 
Burnham, 94 
Eager, 40 
Felton, 57 
Gilbert, 98 
Gleason, 66 
Hager, 46. 48, 62 
Hayden. 23 
Howe. 30, 36, 44, 71, 74, 

90,91 
Johnson, 12 
JIanson, 97 
Maynard, 62, 76, 84 
Minot, 21 
Moore, 80 

Morse, 13, 41, 45, 72. 78 
Newton, 19, 28, 34, 49 
Puffer, 72 
Ray, 55 
Rice, 15 
Smith, 31 
Snow, 11 
Stevens, 14, 53 
Temple, 61 
Ward, 42 
Welch, 95 
Whitman, 59 
Williams, 63, 73 

Stratton, 454, 455 
Barnes, 8, 10 
Brigham, 5, 7, 9 
Eager, 19 
Hervey, 18 
Howe, 3 
Parker, 1 
Traine, 2 
Temple, 6 

Taylor, 455, 456 
Banister. 11 
Barrett, 2 
Greely, 4 
Hapgood, 2, 8 
Johnson, 1 
Joslin, 5 
Lakin, 1 
Lamb, 3 



Mills, 7 
Newton, 6 

Tainter, 456, 457 
Arnold, 28 
Bailey, 27 
Barrett, 8 
Bond, 29 
Brigham, 16 
Bush, 26 
Goodnow, 23 
Gould, 24 
Grey, 1 

Howe, 19, 21, 39 
Knight, 44 
Loring, 23 
Ward, 9 
Warren, 4 
Wilkins, 25 
Woods, 12 

Temple, 457, 458 
Adams, 1 
Arnold. 17 
Baker, 24 
Balcom, 29, 30 
Barry, 5 
Bush, 2 
Cloyes, 16 
Dadman, 12 
Goodnow, 2 
Holland, 4 
Howe, 7, 8 
Joslin, 1 

Maynard, 11, 20, 21 
Morse, 13 
Sawin, 19 
Sherman, 3, 9 
Stearns, 10 
Stow, 1 

Stratton, 6, 15 
Walcut, 22 
Wilkins, 27 
Williams, 28 

Thaping, 458 

Thomas, 458 

Bigelow, Eager, Morse. 
TOMBLIN, 458 

Newton, Wait. 
townsend, 459 
Trowbribge, 459 

Barnes, Stevens, 
Symmes. 

VOCKARY, 459 

Newton. 
Wait, 459 
"Walcutt, 459 
Walker, 459 
Walkup, 459 
Ward, 459—462 

Barnes, 38 

Bigelow, 38 

Bowker, 55 

Brigham, 30, 53 

Cleveland, 29 

Davis, 54 

Eames, 8 
. Goodale, 61 



Haskell, 60 
Howe. 7, 9, 31 
Jackson, 2 
Johnson, 6 
Kendall, 63 
Knapp, 44 
Mixer, 4 
Moore, 5 
Morse, 56 
Oakes, 50, 51 
Osgood, 62 
Palmer, 43 
Phelps, 41 
Prescott, 49 
Rice, 14, 15, 38, 58 
Stone, 13-.^ 
Weeks, 45 
Wheelock, 35 
AV'ilkinson. 46 
Williams, 3, 57 
Woods, 12 

Warren, 462, 463 
Arnold, 18 
Barnes, 17 
Bloys, 2 
Bonney, 35 
Brigham, 4, 14, 29 
Eager, 20 
Fiske, 3 
Garfield. 
Goodale, 36 
Goodnow, 27 
Harrington, 3, 5, 22 
Hastings, 3 
Hunt, 31 
Mixer, 7 
Morse, 29 
Nixon, 28 
Stevens, 21 
Stone, 6 
Weeks, 32 
Williams, 16 

Weeks, 463—465 
Allen, 25 
Ames, 40 
Barnes, 1, 26 
Bigelow, 21, 22 
Bowker, 16 
Brigham. 19 
Brown, 39 
Clark, 34 
Felton, 30. 42 
Goodale, 20 
Goodnow, 17 
Hager, 49 
Holland, 1 
Keyes, 6 
Maynard, 41 
Newton, 22 
Parker, 36 
Parminter, 46 
Patch, 47 
Rice, 23 
Sawyer, 20 
Seaver, 32 
Sparhawk, 15 
Stevens, 18 
Tomblin, 3 
Trescott, 1 
Walcutt, 43 
Ward, 8 



490 



Warren, 37 
Wheeler, 48 

"Wells, 465 

Wheeler, 465, 466 
Barnard, 21 
Bowker, 10 
Hapgood, 4 
Holloway, 6 
Morse, 9 
Thompson, 21- 
Wells, 3 

Wheelock, 466 

Flagg. 
Whitcomb, 466 

Brown. 
W^hitney, 466, 467 

Allen, 6 

Austin, 14 

Barnes, 18 

Barrett, 4 

Bridge, 4 

Cutler, 17 

Goodale, 8 

Hapgood, 2 

Joslin, 10 

Kendall, 2 

Lawrence, 3 

Livermore, 12 

Reed, 1 

Smith, 9 

Wheeler, 5 
Wilder, 468 

WiLKixs, 468, 469 
Barnard, 14 
Brigham, 48, 51 
Brown, 46 

Bruce, 4, 7, 10, 44, 47 
Bush, 2 
Cox, 27 
Cranston, 3 
Darling, 9 
Dunn, 15 
Felton, 53 
Fox, 7 
Gates. 16 
Holman, 54 
Knight, 22 
Loring, 41 
Maynard, 43 
Priest, 14 
Randall, 13 
Smith, 3, 26 
Taylor, 6 
Taynter, 11 
Temple, 49 
Whitcomb, 24, 42 
Wood, 50 



Williams, 469—472 
Ball, 33 
Beaman, 2 
Bigelow, 34 
Buck, 7 

Buckminster. 10 
Estabrook, 12 
Fairbanks, 25 
Freeman, 15 
Gates, 17 
Hammond, 33 
Howe, 7, 13, 18 
Hudson, 29 
Johnson, 1 
Loring, 8, 20 
McPherson, 12, 17 
Payne, 14 
Rice, 6, 11, 19 
Russell, 7, 10 
Smith, 20 
Stow, 3, 14 
Temple, 19 
Travis, 23 
Ward, 1, 4 
Warren. 11 
Woods, 2 

Wilson, 472 

Angler, Ward. 
Wixchester, 472 

Farwell, Smith. 
Witherbee, 472, 473 

Amsden, 7 

Bellows, 6 

Brigham, 1, 2, 3, 10 

Johnson, 2 

Rice, 10 

Sennet, 8 

Stevens, 7 

Wheeler, 5 

Woods, 4 

Witt, 473—475 
Adams, 25 
Baker, 2 

Bayley, 17, 28, 38 
Bigelow, 20, 33 
Breed, 8 
Dexter, 23 
Dike, 11 
Dunn, 31 
Eames, 21 
Eaton, 34 
Estabrook, 37 
Goodale, 13, 19 
Goodnow, 22 
Hapgood, 30 
Howe, 32 
Hunter, 26 
Lamson, 16 



Longbridge, 12 
Marble, 12 
Matthew, 7 
Pierce, 8 
Potter, 3 
Randall, 29 
Spofford, 23 
Stewart. 
Swan, 27 
Tenny, 23 
AVood, 9 
Woodbury, 16 
Woods. ^ 

Wood, 476, 477 
Arnold, 26 
Brigham, 15 
Bush, 29 
Buss, 9 
Cooledge, 21 
Cox, 22 

Henderson, 17, 25 
Higgins, 29 
Howe, 13 
Priest, 29 
Sawin, 16 
Stratton, 18 
Turner, 19 
Wheeler, 7 
Wilkins, 20 

Woods, 477—480 
Barnes, 29, 42, 60 
Bellows, 5 
Bent, 38 
Boyd, 77 

Brigham, 34, 41, 76 
Bruce, 16 
Dexter, 43, 73 
Eager, 29 
Fairbanks, 3 
Gates, 11 
Hapgood, 54 
Howe, 38 
Johnson, 30 
Maynard, 75 
Moore, 13 -\ 
Parminter, 1 
Rice, 53 
Smith, 59 
Stevens, 46 
Stow, 52 
Tainter, 40 
Ward, 4 
Wheeler, 45 
Williams, 51 
Witherbee, 8 
Witt, 61 

Wyman, 480 
Brigham. 



CELEBRATION 



TWO HUNDREDTH ANNIVERSARY 



INCORPORATION OF MARLBOROUGH. 



At a Town Meeting of Marlborough, held March 7, 1859, 
under an article in the warrant, having reference to that subject, 
It was 

" Voted, That the Town notice the Two Hundredth 
Anniversary of its Incorporation, by a public Commemora- 
tion. 

" Voted, That a Committee of five be chosen to invite some 
suitable person to deliver a Commemorative Address on the 
approaching Bi-centennial Anniversary of the Incorporation of 
the Town ; to aid the one so selected as he may need and they 
may be able, in collecting materials for his Address ; and to com- 
municate with the neighboring Towns originally included in 
Marlborough, in reference to their participation in the Commem- 
oration ; and to take any other measures, in relation to the 
Celebration, which they may think necessary or desirable." 

At the adjournment of the meeting, April 4, the following 
persons were chosen to constitute the Committee : 

Rev. Horatio Alger, Rev. S. F. Bucklin, Stephen Morse, Esq., 
Hon. O. W. Albee, and Edward Wilkins. 

Soon after their appointment, the Committee engaged Hon. 
Charles Hudson, of Lexington, a native of the Town, to prepare 
a Commemorative Address for the proposed Celebration. 

63 



492 

At a Town Meeting, held March 5, 1860, it was voted that 
the Committee already chosen, nominate a Committee to make 
fnrther arrangements for the coming Celebration in June next. 

At an adjournment of the meeting, held April 2, the Com- 
mittee made the following Report, which was accepted by 
the Town : 

" Your Committee recommend that the Committee already 
appointed by the Town be enlarged to nineteen, and that the 
following persons, with those already chosen, constitute that 
Committee, viz. : Samuel Boyd, Hollis Loring, Charles M. 
Howe, Elbridge Howe, Lambert Bigelow, 2d, J. S. Witherbee, 
Samuel B. Maynard, David B. Goodale, William Hagar, Wil- 
liam Wilson, George E. Manson, Charles Brigham, B. F. 
Underbill, and Eber Howe.* 

" Your Committee further recommend, that the Town appro- 
priate not less than one thousand dollars, for the purposes of 
the Celebration, and that they authorize their Committee of 
Arrangements to draw on the Town Treasurer for this amount, 
provided said Committee find the printing and other expenses 
necessary to give weight and dignity to the Celebration, 
comporting with the ancient reputation of the Town, require 
that sum. 

" The Committee further nominate Hon. Francis B. Fay, 
of Lancaster, (a native of Southborough,) as President of the 
day ; Col. William H. Wood, Chief Marshal ; Sylvester Buck- 
lin, Winslow M. Warren, Edward A. Gay, Henry O. Russell, 
John Chipman, and Francis Brigham, Assistant Marshals. 

" The Committee recommend that the appointment of Vice 

* A vacancy which occurred in the Committee of Arrangements through the 
lamented death of Rev. S. F. Bucklin, who had taken a deep and active inter- 
est in the proposed Celebration, was filled by the appointment of William Gib- 
bon in his place. The following Preamble and Resolutions were unanimously 
passed at a meeting of the Committee. 

" Whereas Rev. Sylvester F. Bucklin was an active member of this Com- 
mittee, and manifested a strong interest in the coming Bi-centennial Celebration, 
as well as in the interests of the community at large, therefore 

" Resolved, That, in the death of the Rev. S. F. Bucklin, this Committee has 
lost a most useful member ; the social circle in which he moved, a kind adviser 
and most urbane friend ; and the community at large, a revered citizen. 

f< Resolved, That we tender to the widow and family of our respected friend, 
our deep and heartfelt sympathies in this hour of tjieir great bereavement." 



493 

Presidents, and such other Committees as shall be necessary, 
be left to the Committee of Arrangements. The Committee 
further recommend that Wednesday, the 13th day of June 
next, be fixed upon as the day for the Celebration. 

" All which is respectfully submitted. 

" O. W. AlBEE, for the Cominittee." 

In the discharge of the duties assigned them, the Committee 
of Arrangements held numerous meetings, at some of which 
delegates from neighboring towns were present, by invitation, 
to co-operate. Sub-committees were appointed, and the fol- 
lowing persons were designated as Officers of the day. 

President. 
FKANCIS B. FAY, of Lancaster. 

Vice Presidents. 

Henry Rice, Jabez Rice, 

Stephen R. Phelps, Dwight Witt, 

Isaac Hayden, Lambert Bigeloav, 

Solomon Weeks, William L. Howe, 

Stephen Pope, John Goodale, 

EzEKiEL Bruce, Alden Brigham. 

Rev. Horatio Alger, Chaplain. 
Samuel B. Maynard, Treasurer. 
AViLLiAM IL Wood, Chief Marshal. 

Assistant Marshals. 
Sylvester Bucklin, Henry O. Russell, 

WiNSLOw M. Warren, John Chipjian, 

Edward A. Gay, Francis Brigham. 

HoLLis LoRiNG, Toastmaster. 

Wednesday, the 13 th of June — one of the pleasantest days 
of that pleasant season — was ushered in by the firing of one 
hundred guns, and the ringing of bells. At an early hour, 
citizens of Marlborough and the neighboring Towns, with those 
who had come from greater distances, assembled at the Town 
House, to exchange greetings of welcome and congratulation. 

At about ten o'clock, a Procession was formed, under the 
direction of the Chief Marshal, and moved through the 



494 

principal streets of the East and West villages, to the pavilion 
on Ockoocangansett Hill, where the Commemorative Exercises 
were held. The public buildings and the tents were elegantly 
decorated, at the expense of the Town, by Col. William Beals, 
of Boston. Many of the private residences, and places of 
business, on the route of the Procession, also presented appro- 
priate mottoes and tasteful decorations. 

The Marlborough Rifle Company, under Capt. Henry Whit- 
comb, performed escort duty. The Committee of Arrange- 
ments, heading the Procession, were followed by the Officers of 
the day, the four oldest men ,of Marlborough, — Mr. Willard 
Newton, Capt. Jedediah Wood, Capt. Aaron Stevens, and Mr. 
Stephen Rice, — and the invited guests. The citizens of the 
several 'Borough Towns followed in the order of their incor- 
poration, each headed by a band of music. To the Free 
Masons, the Sons of Temperance, and the several Fire Com- 
panies, each also having bands of music, places were assigned 
in the Procession. The services in the Pavilion commenced 
with an 

Invocation, by Rev. Joseph Allen, D. D., of Northborough. 

The following Hymn, written by William C. Bryant for a 
similar celebration, Avas then sung by the Musical Association of 
the 'Borough Towns, to the tune of " Auld Lang Syne." 

Two hundred years has June renewed 

Her roses, since the day 
When here, amid the lonely wood, 

Our fathers met to pray. 

Beside this gentle stream, that strayed 

Through pathless woodlands then, 
The calm, heroic women prayed, 

And grave, undaunted men. 

Hymns on the ancient silence broke 

From hearts that faltered not, 
And undissembling lips that spoke 

The free and guilelesss thought. 

They prayed and thanked the Mighty One 

Who made their hearts so strong, 
And led them towards the setting sun, 

Beyond the reach of wrong. 



495 

For them he made that desert place 

A pleasant heritage, — 
The cradle of a free-born race, 

From peaceful age to age. 

The plant they set — a little vine — 

Hath stretched its boughs afiir. 
To distant hills and streams that shine 

Beneath the evening star. 

Ours are their fields, — these fields that smile 

With summer's early flowers ; 
Oh, let their fearless scorn of guile, 

And love of truth, be ours ! 

Prayer by Rev. Horatio Alger, Chaplain of the day. 

After Music by the Band, Hon. Francis B. Fay, President 
of the day, spoke as follows : 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

In obedience to the kind and generous invitation of the citizens 
of Marlborough, and of the Committee of Arrangements, I assume 
the duties of the Chair. For this token of their friendship, for this 
distinguished honor, I ■svould tender my grateful acknowledgments, my 
sincere and warmest gratitude. 

We have assembled here, at the call of the citizens of Marlborough, 
on a very rare, interesting and momentous occasion, — an occasion 
resembling the revolution of some of the heavenly bodies, which 
require a century to re-appear. While we rejoice, while we mingle in 
the festivities of the day, it is natural for us to take a retrospect of the 
past, and contemplate the changes that have taken place here in the 
last century, — and the far greater changes we shall find, if we go back 
to the day we now propose to celebrate. Well may we ask, " Our 
Fathers, where are they ? " What scenes, what changes, what im- 
provements have been presented and passed away, even here, since 
1660 ! AVlio is there among this vast multitude that was an eye- 
witness and can describe the state of things here, and give us an 
account of the ceremonies, on a similar occasion, one hundred years 
ago ? Not one. No, not a single individual is able to say, in the 
language of Scripture, " I only am escaped alone to tell thee." 

Is it in our power to realize the changes during the last century ? 
What alterations and improvements ! What increase of comforts and 
population ! For one, I can look back some fifty years upon this 



496 

ancient town, and the population has nearly quadrupled in that time. 
At the same ratio of increase, what will it be one hundred years 
hence ? and which of us will be present to witness a similar ceremony 
to the present ? are questions which, I presume, none here will under- 
take to answer. 

Let us now carry our minds back a century farther, and contem- 
plate the condition of our ancestors here two hundred years ago. 
In place of this landscape before us, now so beaiitiful to behold, these 
stately mansions, these fruitful fields, waving grass, and flowers of 
every hue, there was at that time one vast forest, through which the 
savage beast and not less savage man roamed undisturbed, with here 
and there a rude log cabin, or a block-house surrounded by palisades, 
to protect the inmates from the stealthy attacks of a ruthless foe. 

These were times that emphatically tried men's souls, — aye, and 
women's souls, too. And here I wish to remark, that I am one of 
those who believe that women have souls as well as men, and quite as 
valuable, notwithstanding some crotchety old bachelors have pretended 
to doubt it. But let me say to my fair auditors here, that their grand- 
mothers of that day had no crinoline, no satins and cashmeres ; they 
had no catalogue of a wardrobe, consisting of a morning dress, an 
evening dress, a ball dress, a riding dress, a walking dress, a traveling 
dress, &c. &c., but their Avardrobe comprised one single dress, carded, 
spun and woven by their own hands. Moreover, they were their 
own mantua-makers and milliners. Their jewels were the robust 
children groAving up around them ; their piano was the wheel and 
loom ; and their promenades were over burnt logs, briars and thorns, 
and through the forest. 

Such Avas the condition and character of the first settlers of this an- 
cient tOAvn, such the venerable matrons Avho raised up the noble sons, 
the dauntless band who resisted the oppression of the mother country, 
and achieved our glorious independence. Ha\'e Ave not reason to be 
thankful to Heaven and to them for the numerous blessings which they 
ha\^e transmitted to us ? May Ave not emphatically say : "Our grand- 
fathers planted, our fathers Avatered, and Ave are reaping the increase." 
But I am trespassing upon your patience, and encroaching on the 
rights of the Orator of the day. You will permit me, therefore, to 
introduce to you the Hon. Charles Hudsox, one of Marlborough's 
most distinguished sons, Avhose name has been associated with the 
Councils of the State and Nation, for the last quarter of a century. 

When the President of the day had concluded his remarks, 
which were received with great approbation, and quiet was 



497 

restored in the capacious tent, Mr. Hudson addressed the 
assembly as follows : 

Ladies and Gentlemen of Marlborough, 

and of the Borough Towns, here JJssembled: 

After the unavoidable delays of the morning, and the fatigue 
necessarily attendant upon a long march under the scorching rays of a 
summer's sun, you need not apprehend that the pleasures of this joyful 
occasion will be marred by listening to an Address fearfully dull and 
fearfully long. Wlien your Committee honored me with an application 
to prepare an Address for the approaching Anniversary of my native 
town, I was fully aware, as they must have been, that the history of 
such a town as Marlboi'ough, covering two entire centuries, could not 
be compressed into an Address of suitable length for a festive occasion ; 
and believing, with them, that the records of the past would furnish a 
fruitful field of instruction for the present generation, I have prepared 
an account, somewhat in detail, of the settlement, rise and progress of 
the town. 

I hold in my hand a voluminous manuscript, recounting the deeds of 
our Fathers, and the development of Republican principles in this place, 
— of which I will say, as Mark Anthony said of the Will of Ca;sar, " I 
do not mean to read it." And when I assure you that this comprises 
hardly one moiety of what I have prepared, I have no apprehension 
that I shall be called upon by you, as he was by the citizens of Rome, 
to " read the WiU." 

We have with us distinguished gentlemen from abroad, connected 
nearly or more remotely with the good old town of Marlborough ; 
and it would be not only out of taste, but out of character in me, so to 
monopolize the time as to prevent them from laying their offering at 
her feet, or to deprive you of the privilege of listening to their elo- 
quence. I shall therefore hold this manuscript subject to the order of 
your Committee, and shall say a few words which I hope may not be 
deemed inappropriate to this interesting Anniversary. 

We stand here, to-day, on the isthmus of the present, connecting 
the vast continents of the past and the future. On the one hand may 
be seen, with more or less distinctness, the events which have trans- 
pired in ages gone by ; and on the other, through a hazy atmosphere, 
the vain imaginings of what may occur in ages to come. Each of 
these might afford an ample field for meditation and reflection. But 
it is our business, on the present occasion, to inquire into our origin, 
rather than speculate upon our destiny as a people. 

The sons and daughters of Marlborough, now resident within her 
borders, have assembled here to-day, to converse with the generations 



498 

that have passed ; and those of us who have gone out from her, have 
returned, on this joyous oecasion, to receive your cordial greetings, and 
to join Avith you in holding communion with the departed. And may 
we not hope that by some simple rappings, we may call up our Avorthy 
sires, not to trifle with us by tipping our tables, but, from the rich 
tables of their annals, to impart that instruction which is more reliable 
and edifying than the voluble teachings of any trance medium. 

Yes, my friends, our worthy ancestors are with us to-day. A long 
line of the departed here pass in review before us. Two centuries, 
" rich Avith the spoils of time," spread their offerings at our feet. 
They unroU the scroll of history in which the worthy deeds of worthy 
men are recorded, and they invite us, in the very language of inspira- 
tion, " to get wisdom, and with all our gettings to get understanding." 
In these sacred annals our Fathers' characters stand out in bold relief. 
Their stern integrity, their untiring fortitude, their patient resignation, 
shine out in language of living light ; while their devotion to the cause 
of education, their ardent love of liberty, and their uuAvavering faith 
and confidence in God, give us full assurance that they will establish 
a free CommouAvealth, on the broad principles of religion, and so 
leave a rich inheritance to those who come after them. 

They are with us to-day ; — and in their name I welcome you to this 
goodly heritage, purchased by their toil and industry, sustained by 
their fortitude and valor, and consecrated by their fervent prayei's. 
What they sowed in tears, you are permitted to reap in joy. Where 
they struggled, axe in hand, Avith dark and dense forests, you are per- 
mitted to put in the sickle, and gather a rich harvest of golden grain. 
These hiU-sides, which to them were at first but trackless wastes, 
where the wild beasts prowled for prey, and made night hideous by 
their dismal bowlings, to you are green pastures, Avhere your gentle 
herds graze in safety, or low at the appointed hour, to repay your care 
Avith milky rills. And at the House of prayer, Avhere they knelt in 
devotion, with arms in their hands, to protect themselves against the 
merciless savages, you are permitted to boAV in safety, ' having none 
to molest, or make you afraid.' 

You are exempt from the dangers with Avhich they were surrounded. 
You repair to your fields by day, Avithout any apprehension of a secret 
ambush or sudden attack ; you leave your families in the morning, 
secure from the tomahawk and scalping knife, and the more dreaded 
evils of a hopeless captivity. You are not required, at night-fall, to 
leave your houses and your homes i;nprotected, and herd together like 
hunted deer, lest you be consumed in the night-time in your burning 
dwellings. These and other dangers, Avhich made property insecure 
and life precarious, have passed away ; and we are permitted to enjoy 
in peace, in quiet, and in safety, the fruits of their toils through days 



499 

of apprehension and nights of danger. Well, then, may we bless the 
memory of our Fathers, and mingle in our cup of rejoicing, a tear of 
grateful sympathy for the manly sufferings they endured. 

We have met here, on this occasion, for no vain purpose of self- 
laudation. The day is ours, for higher and nobler purposes. We are 
to rejoice and be glad ; but our joy is to be drawn from the contempla- 
tions of the past. I am persuaded that all the pleasures of this joyful 
meeting will be heightened by the recollections of days gone by. 
Our memories will recur to the scenes of our childhood, and our 
happiness will be increased by the fond recollections of a father's care 
and a mother's love. 

And while we stand here, on Ochoocangansett Hill, rejoicing in the 
success which attended our Fathers' efforts, let us commiserate the 
fate of the earlier inhabitants who, on this very spot, cultivated their 
corn and planted their orchards, before these hills and vales were 
made vocal by the voice of the white man. They have fled before 
the march of civilization ; and may our superior light and advantages 
admonish us not to abuse the bounty of Providence, but be careful 
to fulfill the high and holy mission of an improved race. Let not 
the glitter and pageantry of the occasion, or its festive joys, render us 
unmindful of the great Source of all our blessings ; but rather inspire 
us with gratitude to Him who has scattered with such profusion these 
blessings in our pathway — ever remembering that 

" His gifts are only then enjoyed, 
When used as talents lent ; 
Those talents only well employed 
"When in his service spent." 

The general causes which led to the diffusion of the early settlers of 
New England, and gave rise to the planting of the towns in the inte- 
rior, were the love of liberty and the love of land. The Anglo-Saxon 
race seem to have an innate dread of being surrounded by neighbors. 
The Eev. Mr. Hooker, who came to New England with his flock, in 
1633, left Cambridge, where he first located himself, and performed, 
in 1636, a long and difficult journey through the wilderness, and com- 
menced a settlement near Hartford, Connecticut, because he deemed 
it unwise and impolitic to have settlements as near as Charlestown 
and Roxbury and Watertown were to Cambridge. The complaint of 
being " straitened for the want of land," which was put forth by him 
thus early, appears to have been adopted by many of the early settlers. 

The township of Sudbury, of which Marlborough Avas the offshoot, 
was granted as early as 1638, and was incorporated the year follow- 
ing. In May, 1640, on petition of the inhabitants of Sudbury, the 
General Court granted an addition of a mile in width on the south- 
64 



500 

east and south-west sides of the plantation. The same year, six 
hundred additional acres were added to Sudbury. In consequence of 
Indian hostilities and the exposed situation of Dedham, Sudbury and 
Concord, the General Court, in 1645, ordered, " That no man now 
inhabiting or settled in either of these towns, (whether married or 
single,) shall remove to any other place without the allowance of a 
Magistrate or other Selectman of that town, until it shall please God 
to settle peace again." 

But if the good people of Sudbury could not go out of town in 
quest of land, they could do that which was practically the same tiling 
— bring land into town. For, on petition of the inhabitants, the 
General Court, in 1649, passed the following order : " Sudbury is 
granted two miles westward, next adjoining them, for their further 
enlargement ; provided it prejudice not "William Brown in his two 
hundred acres already granted." 

But not satisfied with the possessions they had already acquired, 
several of the leading inhabitants of Sudbury, in May, 1656, preferred 
a Petition to the General Court, in which they set forth "that they had 
lived divers years in Sudbury, and God had been pleased to increase 
their children, which had, divers of them, grown to man's estate ; and 
many of the Petitioners had grown into years, so that they would be 
glad to see their children settled, before the Lord should take them 
hence ; and also that God had given them some considerable quantity 
of cattle, so that they were so straitened that they could not so com- 
fortably subsist as could be desired ; and as some of them had taken 
pains to view the country, and had found a place westward, about 
eight miles from Sudbury, which they conceived might be comfortable 
for their subsistence : " 

Whereupon, they prayed that a tract, eight miles square, might be 
granted them, and they very generously assured the Court that they 
would pay the expense of laying it out, and " shall no further trouble 
this Honored Court." 

This Petition, signed by thirteen prominent citizens of Sudbury, was 
answered by a grant six miles square, which includes the present town 
of Marlborough. The grantees were — Edmund Rice, John Bent, Sen., 
John Woods, John Howe, William Ward, Peter Bent, Thomas King, 
John Maynard, Henry Rice, Richard Newton, Edward Rice, Thomas 
Goodnow, and John Ruddocke. 

But it appears by the Records of the General Court, that a portion 
of the land thus prayed for by the Sudbury petitioners, had already 
been granted to the Indians, and hence some alteration was subse- 
quently made in their boundary, to avoid a conflict with the Indian 
grant. It seems that the Indians had, for some time before the settle- 
ment of the place by the English, occupied a field of some two hundred 



501 

acres, including the spot on which we are assembled, and extending 
southerly to the main road, which they had cultivated with corn, and 
on which they had an orchard in bearing. The grant made to them 
in 1654, extended north from this planting-field, three miles, to a point 
across the Assabet, and thence to the eastward, to the line of Sudbury ; 
so that the Indian Plantation, known by the name of Ockoocangansett, 
included the north-east section of the town, and even embraced the 
land on which the first meeting-houses were erected. 

The English Plantation granted in 1656, lying west and south of 
the Indian Plantation, included most of the present towns of North- 
borough, Westborough and Southborough. Having obtained their 
grant, the Petitioners assembled in 1656, and Edmund Rice, William 
"Ward, Thomas King, John Ruddocke, and John Howe, Avere chosen 
a Committee " to put the affairs of said new Plantation in an orderly 
way." On the following year, William Kerley, John Rediat, Solomon 
Johnson, Samuel Rice, John Johnson, Thomas Rice, Peter King, and 
Christopher Banister, were added to the list of proprietors. 

On the 31st of May, 1660, old style, being the 12th of June, accord- 
ing to our present reckoning, the Plantation was incorporated by the 
name of Marlborough. Having become a body corporate, they pro- 
ceeded to divide a portion of their lands, and about one thousand acres 
Avere laid out as house-lots, to thirty-eight proprietors, according to 
their interest in the Plantation, varying from fifty to fifteen aci"es. 
Meadow lots were soon after granted to the respective proprietors. 

True to Puritan instinct and the spirit of the age, our pious ancestors 
embraced the earliest opportunity to provide for the support of a gospel 
minister. As eai'ly as 1660, a rate was made for Rev. Mr. Brims- 
mead, their minister, and on the year following a house was erected 
and presented to him as his residence. This was followed by the 
erection of a meeting-house, by laying out of highways, and adopting 
such other measures as were necessary to carry forward the settlement, 
and provide for their future wants. 

I have thus, my friends, introduced your ancestors into this town, 
and as they have shown themselves perfectly competent to take care of 
themselves, I shall leave them to manage their own affairs, in their 
own way ; remarking, however, by the by, that they gave early evi- 
dence that they belonged to the "church militant," and were ready to 
" contend for the faith once delivei'ed to the saints," and to persevere 
to the end. 

Nothing of moment occuri-ed till the breaking out of Philip's war in 
1675, — a war which taxed the enei'gies of the Colony and the courage 
of the people to their fullest extent. In 1676, the Indians, led on by 
their bold and daring Chief, spread desolation and dismay through the 



502 

frontier towns. Groton, Lancaster, Brookfield and Medfield, were laid 
in ashes, and many of their inhabitants slain. Nor did Marlborough 
escape the calamities of this war. When assembled in the house of 
God, in the very acts of devotion, the appalling cry that the Indians 
were upon them, was heard ; instantly the congregation was dispersed, 
and scarcely had they arrived safely Avithin their garrison, when the 
rolling volumes of smoke and flame revealed the fact that not only 
their private dwellings, but the house dedicated to the holy cause of 
religion, was to be laid in ashes. This calamity, and the defeat and 
destruction of Capt. Wadsworth and his company at Sudbury, caused 
a general dispersion of the inhabitants, many of whom sought shelter 
in more populous and less exposed towns. 

The return of peace brought back the inhabitants ; but from 1690 
to 1713, a state of mingled rejoicing and apprehension prevailed. 
When the people returned, like the Jews from their captivity, they 
rebuilt their place of worship, and general outward prosperity ensued. 
But though the Indians never made their appearance in any consider- 
able force within the township, they kept up a predatory warfare, 
entering the town stealthily, in small parties, and carrying women 
and children into captivity. Several thrilling instances of this kind 
occurred, the tradition of which has been transmitted to the present 
generation. 

I shall not dwell upon the events which transpired from time to 
time, or note the incidents which are common in every settlement. 
The loss of their worthy minister, in 1701, cast a gloom over his 
devoted flock, and was followed by two or three years of distraction 
in the church ; but the settlement of Rev. Mr. Breck, in 1704, dis- 
pelled the dark cloud which had hung over them, and brought them to 
the enjoyment of the mild and genial rays of the Sun of Righteous- 
ness. 

The township of Marlborough being large, and a portion of her 
inhabitants having settled in " Chauncy," as the westerly part of the 
town was then called, it became inconvenient for them to attend 
church at the old temple, and hence, on their petition and with the 
consent of the people in the central and eastern parts of the town- 
ship, the western section, in 1717, was erected into a town, taking, 
from its geographical position, the name of Westborough. 

Actuated by similar feelings, and the same mutual good-will, in 
1727, the people of Stony Brook, with the consent of all parties, rose 
to the dignity of a municipal corporation, and took the name of South- 
borough. Westborough was subsequently dismembered, the northern 
section taking the name of Northborough. 

Thus has old Marlborough been not only the mother of emigrants, 
but of towns. She has not only sent out her sons and her daughters, 



503 

by the score, to people other and distant places, but when any of her 
children have manifested a desire to set up for themselves, she has, 
like a wise and beneficent parent, given them a liberal slice from the 
old homestead ; and her children, thus endowed, have neither wasted 
their substance, like the prodigal, nor, like the unfaithful servant, hid 
their talent in the earth. Marlborough, instead of repining at her 
reduced dominiou, has had reason to rejoice that, of her abundance of 
land, she has been able to settle her offspring around her. She has 
had no occasion to adopt the mournful strain of the Prophet, ' I have 
nourished and brought up children, and they have rebelled against 
me ; ' but rather to say with pride, in the language of the same 
Prophet, ' Behold me, and the children God hath given me.' 

The death of the Rev. Mr. Breck, in 1731, was a severe affliction 
to the good people of Marlborough. He had been an excellent min- 
ister, and dm'ing his labors with them the clmrch had prospered, and 
the people had dwelt together in peace. But after his decease, divi- 
sions arose, and matters became complicated, so that those who sur- 
vived the contest might be said Avitli propriety to have " come out of 
great tribulation." 

But the limits I have prescribed for myself will not permit me to go 
into details. It must suffice to say that the most trying scenes through 
which the toAvn has been called to pass, were those connected with the 
Indian and Revolutionary wars. From 1723 to 1763, the wars of 
Great Britain with Spain and with France kept the Colony in a state 
of almost perpetual excitement. In the latter case, the Indians were 
united with the French ; and their frequent incursions into the settle- 
ments spread anxiety and alarm through the community, and called 
for heavy drafts of soldiers. Marlborough, though removed from the 
immediate theatre of the French and Indian Avars, furnished many 
soldiers, and was subjected to heavy expenditures. Were it not for 
the more recent trials of the Revolutionary struggle, the difficulties 
and privations, the dangers and sufferings of the " old French war," 
as it was formerly denominated, would be handed down to our chil- 
dren, as furnishing scenes in our history which should be engraven 
upon the tablets of their memories. In those wars Marlborough 
furnished some two hundred men, some of whom were called out 
from year to year, and subjected to all the toils and dangers of Indian 
warfare. The secret ambush and the midnight surprise, the torture 
and massacre attendant upon their warfare, the campaigns in the 
wilderness in the midst of winter, rendered the service at that period 
peculiarly trying. This war proved a severe drain upon the town, 
both with reference to means and to men. But both were offered 
with an alacrity which showed the devotion of the people to the great 
cause of civil and relisrious freedom. 



504 

But the peace of 1763 brought these trials to a close, and gave, as 
we might suppose, tranquillity to the Colony. The people had shown 
their devotion to the crown, and their readiness to expend their 
treasure and their blood to defend his Majesty's Colonies, and even to 
extend his dominion upon these shores. In this manner they had laid 
the Parliament under great obligation to acknowledge their services, 
and respect their rights. But strange to tell, the ministry embraced 
this very period of peace to rivet the fetters upon the very people who 
had fought their battles, and given success to their arms. It was at 
this period that Great Britain commenced her odious system of taxa- 
tion, which finally di'ove the Colonies to resistance. The ingratitude 
of the mother country, and the insidious steps taken by the ministry 
to bring the Colonies to submission, raised a strong feeling of opposi- 
tion to their measures throughout the Province. In this feeling the 
people of Marlborough participated. They promptly responded to the 
calls of patriotism, and adopted the necessary steps to vindicate their 
rights. 

They resolved that they would refrain from the consumption of all 
articles on which the odious tax was imposed, and withdraw their 
patronage fi*om those who persisted in importing such articles into the 
country. And as the controversy progressed, it found the people of 
Marlborough ready to meet the emergency. When entreaty proved 
unavailing, and remonstrance was disregarded; when they saw a 
fixed determination on the part of Great Britain to enforce her op- 
pressive and unconstitutional laws at the point of the bayonet ; like the 
rest of the Colonists, the people of this town prepared, as best they 
could, for a sterner contest. 

And when the blood of their slaughtered countrymen on the plain of 
Lexington cried to them from the ground, the call was not unheeded. 
The ncAvs reaches Marlborough about eleven o'clock, and the effect 
is electrifying. The drums are beat ; the alarm guns are fired ; 
messengers are dispatched in every direction. The farmer quits his 
plow ; the mechanic leaves his shop ; and before two o'clock, about 
one hundred and ninety freemen are on their way to the scene of 
action. Nor did their zeal expire with this first effort. They left 
their business without an hour's warning ; they remained in the ser- 
vice from ten to forty days ; and many of them enlisted into the eight 
months' service ; being resolved that the lawless band Avho had com- 
mitted such outrages at Lexington and Concord, should confine their 
operations to the peninsula of Boston. 

I shall not follow our Fathers through the Revolutionary struggle. 
It is sufficient to say, that the men who gave this earnest of their 
devotion to the cause of liberty, persevered to the end. The fields 
of Bennington, and White Plains, and Rhode Island, and Monmouth, 



505 

witnessed their fidelity; and the labors and sufferings endured, at 
home and abroad, prove that freedom had no truer sons than those 
who were nursed in the lap of old Marlborough. 

To describe the war in detail, so far as the town is concerned ; to 
enumerate the efforts that were made, and the privations that were 
endured, during the protracted struggle, would carry me far beyond 
my prescribed limits. Nor have I time to present the exhaustion that 
Avas felt, after the excitement of the war was over, bringing a lassitude 
more trying than the struggle which preceded. But these trials have 
passed away. Day has dawned upon the land over which the dark 
night of privation and suffering had long brooded. The busy hum of 
industry is now heard, where the savage yell and the alarm of war 
once sounded ; and the smiles of peace light up the hills and vales 
with which we are surrounded. 

But in the midst of the prosperity Avhich we enjoy, let us not forget 
the toils and dangers, the sufferings and privations to which the fathers 
and mothers of the Revolution were subjected, and which they bore 
■with unexampled fortitude, that they might leave a priceless inheri- 
tance to their descendants. 

Citizens of Marlborough — Permit me to congratulate you on this joy- 
ful occasion. You have done well in celebrating this Anniversary. It 
is our duty, at stated times, to leave our usual occupations, step aside 
from the strife of business and the bustle of life, to contemplate our 
origin, commune with past ages, and do honor to those who have gone 
before us. And surely it is not too much to devote one day in two 
centuries to the contemplation of the deeds of our Fathers, to whom we 
are indebted for so many blessings. It is right we should review their 
history, and recount their noble deeds. With some of their trials and 
privations, with their patriotic efforts for the State, and their self- 
sacrificing labors for the church, we have been made acquainted by the 
written word of history, and the living voice of tradition ; and it is 
our duty to transmit these records of the past to the generations which 
shall come after us. The deeds of our ancestors, performed under the 
guidance and smiles of a benignant Providence, must not be permitted 
to sleep in darkness and in death. 

«' Our Fathers taught them to their sons, 
And they again to theirs ; 
And we '11 convey them safely down 
To our succeeding heirs." 

In the pleasing services and joyful festivities of this day, the present 
inhabitants of this town, whether native or adopted, delight to join. 
They rally around the hearth-stone of old Marlborough, and are proud 



506 

to call her, Mother. The towns which have been set off from the Old 
Dominion are here to-day, with fond recollections of the past. They 
have gathered at the old homestead, and Avith filial emotion, bless the 
nursery in which they Avere reared. Though they have set up for 
themselves, and are " well to live " in the world, they are not ashamed 
of their origin, or unmindful of the paternal hand which guided their 
infant feet, or the maternal bosom on which they reclined for protec- 
tion and repose. 

And the individuals who were born upon her soil, and whose for- 
tunes have been cast elsewhere, have returned on this Anniversary 
occasion, to interchange cordial greetings with their friends and kin- 
dred, and to join with them in doing reverence to the place of their 
birth. Though they have been absent in body, they have not severed 
the ties which bind them to the scenes of their childhood, and to the 
companions of their youthful pastimes. And whatever may be their 
situation in the future, or wherever their lot may be cast in times to 
come, I am persuaded that those who are here to-day, and whose 
hearts have been touched by the spirit of the occasion, will add the 
fond recollections of this Anniversary to the many pleasing memories 
of their native town ; and as the years roll round, and time and space 
separate them more and more from this place, their thoughts will from 
time to time turn to the abodes of their ancestors, and their early im- 
pressions, and their first love, will be called up afresh. 

And, my Friends, while you are rejoicing in your birthplace, and 
doing homage at the tombs of your Fathers, will you permit one Avho 
has been absent as a resident more than forty years, to bring his 
humble offering of filial regard, and lay it at the feet of old Marl- 
borough, " Avhich is the mother of us all." My connections with this 
town are neither few nor remote. My parents and grand-parents have 
been residents among you. My maternal ancestors extend back to 
the first settlement of the township, when Abraham Williams received 
a grant of land upon the border of your beautiful lake, and became a 
permanent citizen. And when, more than a century ago, a dark 
cloud hung over the community, and apprehensions were felt that the 
sound of the war-whoop might break the silence of midnight, or the 
blaze of the dwelling might light its inmates to their graves ; when 
fears were entertained for the safety of the Colony itself, so that 
" despair was a secret companion, and the sons of little men were 
afraid," my paternal ancestor, John Hudson, with two of his sons, 
took the field, in company with other stout-hearted sons of Marl- 
borough, to guard the homes of the citizens, and defend the Colony 
against the combined attacks of the French and Indians. And in the 
glorious struggle for our Independence, the same ancestor, with eight 



507 

hardy sons, was among those Avho, like Moses, " were not afraid of 
the King's commandment," but showed their devotion to liberty by 
arming in its defense. 

]\ry parents held a humble position in this community, and have 
found a resting-place beneath your soil. Three sisters, reared beneath 
the same roof with myself, repose in yonder graveyard, while I, the 
sole member of the family, remain. It was within this town, and in 
sight of this very spot, that I drew my first vital breath. Here were 
the sports of my childhood ; and here, amid the gay visions of youth, 
were formed those habits, and those modes of thought, which have 
contributed to shape my humble destiny. In your venerable old 
meeting-house on the southerly slope of this hill, I was, by parental 
fidelity, offered up to Him in whose service I have attempted to labor 
in the community. In your schools I received my first lessons of 
instruction, and in the same little seminaries, forty years ago, I 
endeavored to impart the rudiments of science to your children, some 
of whom I have had the pleasure of greeting this day. I have min- 
gled my labor with your soil, and devoted some of my most anxious 
thought to the improvement and welfare of those confidingly com- 
mitted to my care, when their minds were the most susceptible of 
impressions. 

I mused in early life upon your delightful scenery ; and your beau- 
tiful hill-sides, your placid lake, your forests of fruit-trees, which 
attracted my early gaze, have left an impression upon my heart Avhich 
the cares of an active and somewhat varying life have by no means 
effaced. And never did the glorious old town appear more lovely 
than she does to-day. Her rich verdant carpet, decked and adorned 
with flowers of various tints, her fruit and ornamental trees, casting 
their cooling shade upon the fair fields and laAvns, and giving a deeper 
hue to the face of nature, her gracefully swelling elevations, and her 
broad, luxuriant vales, — tliese, blending in nature's harmony, present 
a scene of rich and varying beauty rarely to be met with. 

But her flowery meads and grassy hill-sides, her gentle flowing 
river and her murmuring rills, her fields with golden harvests, and 
her orchards bending with delicious fruits, however pleasing to the 
eye or grateful to the sense, are less dear to my heart than the fond 
recollections of past friendships, renewed this day by cordial greetings 
and generous sympathies. The past and the present — all that I have 
known heretofore, and all I have witnessed this day — combine to 
strengthen the ties which bind me to the old homestead; and what- 
ever may be my fortune, during the rest of my brief sojourn here 
below, the recollections of Marlborough will be fondly cherished, and 
her prosperity and happiness will ever cheer and gladden my heart. 
65 



508 

At the close of the Address, which was hstened to with 
deep interest, the Musical Association of the 'Borough Towns 
sung, to the air of " Fair Harvard," the following 

ORIGINAL ODE: 

BY HORATIO ALGER, JR. 

From the door of the homestead the mother looks forth, 

With a glance half of hope, half of fear, 
For the clock in the corner now points to the hour, 

Wlien the children she loves should appear. 
For have they not promised, whatever betide, 

On this, their dear mother's birth-day, 
To gather once more round the family board. 

Their dutiful service to pay. 

From the East and the West, from the North and the South, 

In communion and intercourse sweet. 
Her children have come on this festival day. 

To sit, as of old, at her feet. 
And our mother, God bless her benevolent face ! 

How her heart thrills with motherly joys, 
As she stands at the portal with arms opened wide. 

To welcome her girls and her boys. 

And yet, when the first joyful greetings are o'er, 

When the words of her welcome are said, 
A shadow creeps over her motherly face, 

As she silently thinks of the dead — 
Of the children whose voices once rang through her fields, 

Who shared all her hopes and alarms. 
Till, tired with the burden and heat of the day, 

They have fallen asleep in her arms. 

They have gone from our midst, but their labors abide 

On the fields where they prayerfully wrought ; 
They scattered the seed, but the harvest is ours. 

By their toil and self-sacrifice bought. 
As we scan the fair scene that once greeted their eyes. 

As we tread the same paths which they trod. 
Let us tenderly think of our elders by birth, 

Who have gone to their rest and their God. 

God bless the old homestead ! some linger there still, 
In the haunts which their childhood has known, 

While others have wandered to places remote. 
And staked out new farms of their own ; 



509 

But time cannot weaken the ties Love creates, 

Nor absence nor distance impede 
The filial devotion which thrills all our hearts, 

As we bid our old mother, God speed ! 

While these services were going on in the Pavilion, the 
Schools of Marlborough and the neighboring towns, with their 
friends, under the direction of D. B. Goodale, to the number of 
thirteen hundred persons, having formed a portion of the grand 
Procession on a part of the route, repaired to Fairmount, where 
they spent the time very pleasantly in singing appropriate pieces, 
listening to addresses from several gentlemen, and partaking of 
refreshments with which each scholar was furnished, inclosed 
in a neat bag, with a suitable motto on the outside. 

After these Commemorative Exercises were closed, a Proces- 
sion was formed of those holding tickets to the dinner, which 
proceeded to an ample tent, located on land of Henry Rice, Esq., 
a little south of the Town-House, in which plates had been 
laid for sixteen hundred people, by J. B. Smith, of Boston. 

When the tables were filled with guests, the President of the 
day, in calling them to order, spoke as follows : 

Ladies and Gentlemen: 

By direction of the Committee of Arrangements, and in behalf of 
the inhabitants of Marlborough, I extend to you, one and all, a hearty, 
cordial welcome on this occasion, so full of deep interest. They are 
made proud and happy by this visit, and the noble response which has 
been given to their invitation. And, let me say, more especially does 
Marlborough rejoice to see her children and grand-child, after so 
long an absence, return in such numbers to the maternal roof, to pay 
their homage and gratitude to their aged and venerable parent, for the 
care and protection she bestowed upon them, until they became of age 
and set up for themselves. Well may she feel a just pride in her 
offspring, who, after so long an absence, return at her bidding, not in 
poverty or disgrace, but exhibiting all the signs of health and prosper- 
ity, and coming home to greet their aged parent with affection and 
gratitude. Unlike the prodigal son, they have not spent their patri- 
mony in riotous living, and been made to eat husks, or come clothed 
in rags ; but by their enterprise, industry and sobriety, they exhibit all 
the signs of respectability and independence. 

Like another personage in the same parable, this aged mother, 
when apprised of her children's approach, ran out to meet them, 
greeted them with a mother's affection, has, as you see, killed the 



510 

fatted calf, and in her joy has made a feast, which you see before you. 
There is another fact which adds to her pleasure. There is no eldest 
son or daughter who is wroth, and refuses to come in ; but all are 
here, joyous and happy. 

"Where shall we find a parallel to this spectacle ; — a venerable 
matron, two hundred years old, with her children and grand-child 
around her, so far from exhibiting signs of decay, she is, if possible, 
more vigorous than ever, and shows more activity, enterprise, Avealth, 
comforts and luxuries, than she did a hundred years ago. 

Let us, then, as representatives and in behalf of the children and 
grand-child, ever hold her in grateful remembrance for her hospi- 
tality, and the kindness and liberality which we have received at her 
hands. 

A blessing was then invoked by Rev. William Morse, of 
Tyngsborough, a former minister of Marlborough. 

At the close of the dinner, the following Original Ode was 
sung, composed for the occasion, by William F. Allen, Esq., 
of West Newton. 

With praises and thanksgivings 

To God, our hearts o'ertlow, 
Who guided here our fathers 

Two hundred years ago. 
The seed they freely scattered 

Has yielded hundred-fold, 
And farm, and shop, and fireside 

Bless those good men of old. 

Their sons who this day gather, 

Their praise to celebrate. 
Have gone through every nation, 

Have founded many a state ; 
But dear New England ever, 

Where'er the wanderer strays^ 
Is home to him in manhood, 

As in his childhood's days. 

Thou, whose right hand led hither 

Those men whose names we bear, 
And who hast kept their children 

Within thy fostering care ; 
May peace, and thrift, and virtue, 

Still bless this ancient town, 
And may our acts ne'er sully 

Our noble sires' renown. 



I 



511 

At the close of the repast, the President of the day spoke as 
follows : 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

Occupying the position which has been so generously assigned me, 
it is my earnest desire to discharge the duties of the Chair in the most 
faithful manner. 

I beg leave, therefore, to call your attention to a subject of vital 
importance to you all, although it is painful for me to allude to it. But 
as I am placed here not only to preserve order, but also to preserve 
you from harm, and feeling that many of you were exposed to immi- 
nent jjcril, Avithout, perhaps, being aware of your danger, I can no 
longer keep silence ; and I have no doubt many of you will hereafter 
hold me in grateful remembrance for this timely warning. 

Perhaps there is no branch of science upon which more has been 
written, none which has engaged the attention of the most learned 
to a greater extent, than that of physiology ; and no part of this sci- 
ence has been more ably discussed than that relating to diet. Now, 
if I mistake not, all writers agree that, if we would preserve health 
and secure long life, w^e must practice temperance in eating as well as 
in drinking, and that excessive indulgence in either is perilous, if not 
fatal, in its consequences. 

As I was early apprised that the renowned J. B. Smith (long known 
among epicures) was to be the caterer here, I have felt great solicitude 
lest he, as usual, should spread before you too many temptations ; and 
looking around these tables during this repast, perceiving the industry 
displayed here, and how rapidly the edibles disappeared, my anxiety 
has got the better of my modesty; and, painful as it is, I feel con- 
strained to say to you, that in my humble opinion, any farther indul- 
gence will, most likely, be attended with consequences, to many of 
you, fearful to contemplate. I woidd, therefore, most earnestly urge 
upon you, one and all, at once to sign the pledge to abstain from fur- 
ther indulgence. 

You will perceive that this warning is the more timely, when I 
inform you that there is another course to be served up, of several 
kinds of toast^ very highly seasoned, and full of spice, which has been 
prepared and will be spread before you. And let me add, that if 
any of you are called upon, or desire to express an opinion as to the 
quality of the toast, I am requested by the Committee of Arrange- 
ments to limit each speaker to not exceeding ten minutes. As so 
many have come here primed and loaded, each must have an oppor- 
tunity to discharge himself. Now I trust it will be remembered 
that I have been a distinguished (?) military man, evidently born to 
command. I trust, therefore, no one will presume to disobey orders. 



512 

1 will now introduce to you Holus Loring, Esq., the Toastmaster 
of the day. 

Mr. Loring then read the following sentiments : 

1. This Centennial Gathering of the 'Borough Families — An occasion consecra- 
ted to grateful recollections, to cherished anticipations, and to social, fraternal 
and Christian greetings. 

2. A cordial welcome home to our eldest Daughter, Westborough, — who, one hun- 
dred and forty-three years ago, received our western border for her inheritance ; 
whose precepts and examples have been a noble Keform School, even to the 
present generation. 

Hon. Edward Mellen, of Wayland, a native of Westbor- 
ough, responded substantially as follows : 

Mr. President : 

Through you, let me express my thanks to my townsmen for the 
honor they have done me in this call to answer for them on this great 
occasion. They have done this, doubtless, because they know that 
though removed from them, my heart abides ever with the friends and 
associates of my youth. The oak is not an unfit emblem to express 
my attachment to my native soil. 

They will permit me to say that few things could be more grateful 
to me, after an absence of many years, than to feel, as I am made this 
day to feel, that I still fill a space in their kind regards. Let me 
assure them, too, that whatever success or distinction I have won in 
the world, they are chiefly grateful to me in that I can share them 
with my fellow-townsmen. 

I see around me men whose wise counsel and actions won my 
youthful regard, and whose consistency, fidelity and purity through 
life, now in their old age challenge my reverence. 

The younger generation is known to me, mainly, by wearing the 
blended features of their parents, the companions of my youth ; and 
they, too, share largely in my kind regards. And, JMr. President, as 
we came up this morning in tribes, in the procession, I confess my 
heart warmed to the tartan, and I am here to do their bidding. 

We one and all thank our hosts for the honor of joining them in 
expressing our regard for our common ancestors. We cannot forget, 
on this or on any occasion, how close and near is the alliance of your 
families with our families, alike honored in your and our memories ; 
the Brecks, the Parkmans, the Brighams, the Howes, and a long cat- 
alogue of families, common to both, and revered alike in both munici- 
palities. 

We come, and with one blending voice and sympathy, greet you on 



513 

this occasion, hallowed by its great associations, by memories calling 
up a line of common and honored ancestry ; and by anticipation, 
hailing the generations that in long succession are to fill the places we 
now fill, 

"We hail this auspicious occasion, and rejoice to join with you in its 
celebration. It is fit and orderly thus to unite in paying honor to the 
dead. There is a weak and pusillanimous pride of ancestry that 
debases ; and there is a respect for ancestors Avhich the heart owns 
and the understanding ratifies, which exalts the character and refines 
the intellect. Under the influence of this sentiment, as Ave came up 
this morning through your beautiful town, your hills and plains 
assumed a neAv appearance, a fresher aspect, beneath the inspiration 
of thronging associations. They seemed to kindle into beauty as we 
thought of the toils, and sympathized with the sufferings, of our com- 
mon ancestors, as we came at the end of two centuries to manifest 
our regard for their characters, to pay a tribute to their worth, and to 
express our admiration for their heroism. 

Let us glance at some of the facts in their history. 

In the three French wars, extending through a term of thirty-three 
years, probably there was not a township in New England without a 
loss of more or less of her inhabitants ; and in some of these wars 
hardly a household remained unbroken. During the war in 1745, 
when Louisburg was taken from the French, I believe the Colonies 
of New England maintained for one or two years, and paid from their 
own treasures, more men against the French than were mustered into 
service at any one time in our late war with England. 

These various wars, with the King Philip war, lasted for thirty-four 
years. During these wars, the lines between the Colonies of the two 
great nations were often run in fire and blood by the allied arras of 
Old England and New England, on the one hand, and of France and 
her Indian allies, on the other, till in 1763, on the ridges of battle, 
was planted the olive of peace. 

From the first settlement of this town to the close of the Revolu- 
tion, our fathers had been engaged in wars for the term of forty-two 
years. Adding the harrassing and murderous wars from 1660 to the 
12th of August, 1676, the date of the close of the King Philip war, 
when the infant Colonies literally, without a figure of speech, slept 
upon their arms, cultivated and gathered their crops with arms in one 
hand and the implements of husbandry in the other, they had wars 
for the space of fifty-eight years. 

In looking over the histories of our towns, one is struck with 
wonder at the courage and perseverance of the men of that day. 
About twenty months after the treaty of Paris, in 1763, the British 
Parliament, on the 22d day of March, 1765, passed the Stamp Act. 



514 

We forget the impolicy of that measure of legislation, when we think 
it was aimed at those colonists who had shared the hardships, and 
won with their allied arms the success and glories of the conquest. 

It is now nearly a century and a half since we parted from the 
parent town. We were then a feeble, scattered band, hovering, trem- 
bling on the verge of the frontier of civilization, having no town 
between us and Brookfield on the Avest, at the distance of forty miles. 
Since then we have one fair daughter. She is settled in that beautiful 
valley, protected on the north, east and west, by sheltering hills. You 
will permit us to praise her, as all families are proud of an only 
daughter. We trust, Mr. President, you will contrive, before this 
occasion is passed, to unseal the golden lips of silence, and let us all 
hear her voice. 

Our fathers took the Puritan doctrines that united purity with firm- 
ness, from tlieir homes in England, and transferred and practiced them 
in their new homes here in the wilderness, whither they Avent. 

Permit me here, as I have not the fortune to have my home in my 
native town, to speak freely of the virtues of those who remain in the 
old hive. Of the living, let us pass them in silence, for it has been 
well said, " The voice of eulogy sounds ever harsh, save when it 
comes back, softened by an echo, from the tomb." 

The tovra of Westborough has not forgotten either the educational 
or religious institutions of the forefathers. She has sent forth into all 
the learned professions men who have reaped in all a harvest of 
renown. We could mention individuals in each calling, but it might 
seem invidious. We have sent forth one, Eli Whitney, (he bore, 
while living, his honors so unostentatiously, that he excited no man's 
envy,) who, by his inventive genius, trebled in value the whole cotton 
growing lands of the South. This is said by Judge Johnson, an 
entirely competent authority, to have been done by the invention of 
the cotton-gin. 

But let me say, however, that it is not mainly in their material 
wealth, they have a right to claim distinction ; but in industry, manly 
independence, intelligence and freedom of thought ; it is in these 
they have a right to stand as the peers of the inhabitants of any other 
municipality. 

Mr. President, I could not suppress the spontaneous utterance of so 
much of praise of the past generations, and would not, if I could. 
After a somewhat careful study of their character, I am happy, on 
this occasion, to give this tribute to their memory. It is fit and be- 
coming that local histories and local celebrations should be multiplied. 
They tend to preserve the memories of those good men, whose lives 
have been a continual struggle against an adverse current, beneath 
which, at last, they have sunk ; leaving none to record their fate or 



515 

their virtues, after the living witnesses have passed away. They were 
tyi^es of those, of whom a recent Scotch poet, Nicholl, has sung, he 
being one of the number : 

The pious poor man sleeps at length, 

Where pains and toils are o'er ; 
The bitter -wind — the hunger fiend — 

Can torture him no more. 

These celebrations will make more lasting the memory of such as 
exist in every locality, men and women, whose character and virtues 
are their priceless treasure, and who tleserve a memorial as lasting as 
marble. Such as these, are the glory of the homes of our childhood, 
Avhom we can never forget, and Avhom we can never remember without 
an affectionate regard ; and who endear the scenes with which their 
memories are forever associated, shedding a light on our pathway at 
every stage of our progress. These memories of our village Hamp- 
dens, " inglorious " only for want of an opportunity ; and of that larger 
class who, by every means within their reach, have been useful in 
their generation, in order to leave the world better, because they have 
lived in it, should be gathered up, and made perpetual. Theirs was 
not a wide theatre, but they acted well their parts ; and for the sake 
of their localities, as well as of themselves, their memories should not 
be permitted to perish from among men. 

We cannot but feel that it is good for us to be here, to survey anew, 
as we have to-day, the foundations of our towns ; to trace their varied 
progress, now well nigh extinguished in blood ; now, with one united 
effort, struggling to avert the perils of despotic poAver ; and then, 
emerging into the clear current of freedom, broadening and deepening 
as it runs. We are here to expi'ess our reverence for the characters of 
the founders of our toAvns, for their heroism and independence ; to 
catch and embathe our spirits in the fragrancy of their virtues. Our 
successors will rise with far higher opportunities than those of our 
ancestors, and though pigmies, they will stand on the giant shoulders 
of their and our Fathers ; but most fortunate will they be, if they can 
rival the manly virtues and qualities of those sires. 

God grant to those, who shall come in long succession after us, to 
see by the eye of faith as clear as our Fathers saw in their day, " the 
chariots of fire, and the horses of fire," that Avere to go before them to 
victory. Let me close by a sentiment : 

To the memory of our Fathers in the ancient town of Marlborough. 
They laid deep the foundations of our prosperity, in establishing free 
churches and free schools ; and whatever success or honors we have 
won, to their memory we ascribe the praise. 
66 



516 

3. Otir fair Daughter, Smithborotigh — Although she resides at the South, yet 
we are glad to know that she agrees in sentiment with her Mother ; that she 
goes for '* free soil, free speech, and free men." 

The following response was made by Rev. William J. 
Breed, of Southborough : 

Mr. President : 

There is a chord in the human heart whidi vibrates mysteriously to 
every whisper, that steals upon us from the solemn shades of antiquity. 
We feel the inexplicable thrill, when we sit down by the side of a 
river, and think how many ages before we existed, its restless Avaters 
rolled ocean-ward ; and so when we penetrate the forest, heavy with the 
moss of ages, or gaze upon some stupendous mountain cliff, that has 
frowned in its solitary grandeur, amidst the warring elements, ever 
since creation was finished ; and above all, when in the stilly night 
we gaze upon the glories of the over-canopying firmament, and think 
how long those silent watchers of the night have traversed their orbits, 
and poured their light through the illimitable regions of space. With 
emotions akin to these, does the bosom of the Christian traveler glow, 
when he contemplates the works and dwellings of the ancient men of 
renown. As he ruminates among the ruins of Grecian, or Roman 
gi'andeur, Avhat thrilling associations rise up around him at every 
step ! What gigantic forms flit before the mental eye, as in the dim 
twilight, he muses over broken arches, and crumbling porticoes ! 
Strange, indeed, is the communion Avhich we hold with the illustrious 
dead of remote antiquity. We hear the thunder of Demosthenes at 
Athens, and we see the throne of Philip quake. We behold Cataline 
return to form new conspiracies against the liberties of Rome, and we 
see Cicero driving him, with confusion and desperation, from the 
Senate-house. The sublimest and sweetest notes of Homer and Virgil 
break upon our ravished ear, and w^e wander and luxuriate amidst 
scenes of enchantment. If such are the creations of the fancy by 
which we find ourselves surrounded, in Greece and Italy, what would 
be the emotions of the true descendants of Solon, Themistocles and 
Leonidas, or of Brutus and the Scipios, could they trace back their 
genealogy to those illustrious men, and surveying the splendid ruins of 
their power and greatness, say. Those men were our fathers. Their 
blood still flows warm in our veins. Their memorial is embalmed 
in our hearts, though the glory has long since departed from their once 
loved land. 

So natural are such reflections and emotions to man, that there, is 

no civilized nation, or even savage tribe, in which a deep reverence is 

felt for a remote ancestry. This thrilling interest in the antiqui- 



517 

ties of a nation to which we belong, may be carried too far ; but more 
than cold, and casual allusions, are certainly due to the memory of 
those, from Avhom, under God, a happy posterity have received une- 
qualed civil and religious blessings and immunities. If the founders 
of states and towns were ever entitled to live in the grateful remem- 
brance of their posterity, this honor belongs surely to the first settlers 
of New England, and of the towns in particular represented here 
to-day. True, Mr. President, they were not the descendants of the 
fabled divinities of Troy or Latium, and no kingly arms emblazoned 
their escutcheons. Their heroic deeds, and patient and victorious 
sufferings, are not eternized in the sublime and harmonious numbers 
of Horace or Virgil. Triumphal arches, sculptured monuments, and 
exquisite paintings, they have not left behind them ; but we mourn not 
for them the want of classic renown, or royal pedigree. The legacy 
of our Fathers embraces what is immeasurably superior. Were the 
heroes of antiquity renowned for daring and fortitude ? Which of 
them, in those attributes, excelled our Fathers ? Were some of the 
ancients renowned for their heathen virtues ? Our Fathers, in moral 
and religious qualities, wherein was the hiding of their strength and 
true greatness, surpassed them, as the sun in brightness excels the 
flickering taper. They have bequeathed to us, not the orders and 
insignia of nobility, but the plain, homespun garments of Repub- 
licanism, their invaluable Christian counsels and example. In the 
place of literature and the fine arts, we have their laws and institu- 
tions, which, as a whole, bear the stamp of unexcelled wisdom and 
forecast. And thanks to the great Author of all good, instead of 
splendid ruins, — the smouldering remains of ancient greatness, — we 
have the busy hum of unparalleled commercial enterprise ; thousands 
of populous towns and smiling villages, innumerable well cultivated 
farms, and colleges and elementary schools, without number. From 
the same source we have received the institutions of a pure gospel, the 
Sabbath, and the preaching of that gospel. We have thousands of 
Christian churches, in which we can worship God according to the 
dictates of our own conscience, in the place of ruined temples of 
massive stone, and finished workmanship. 

Surely our Fathers, the primitive settlers and founders of our fair 
and beautiful heritage, who have bequeathed to us blessings and im- 
munities far greater than any other people ever possessed or enjoyed, 
are worthy to be had in everlasting remembrance. The Fathers, the 
first settlers of this town, were men of no ordinary stamp. They were, 
most of them, men of good education and of sterling common sense ; 
they were, many of them, men of true piety. And if we are now, Mr. 
President, the freest and happiest people in the world, we owe this 
enviable distinction more to the prayers which they offered up, to the 



518 



laws which they enacted, to the institutions which they foixnded, than 
to all other human means. The three grand pillars upon which they 
erected our free government, are religion, education, and public virtue. 
The first town meeting called after the incorporation of Southborough 
as a town, was convened for the purpose of " procuring a minister of 
good conversation, to preach God's word." This meeting was held 
August 14, 1727. And thee hief business of sundry other meetings was 
to devise ways and means to build a meeting-house. Money to build 
a meeting-house, and for the payment of a preacher, was promptly 
raised. The alacrity and self-denial displayed by the Fathers, in that 
day of small things, is truly surprising. It Avas not a small affair to 
build a meeting-house, forty feet wide by fifty feet long, and twenty- 
four feet stud, in 1727-8 ; but they did it cheerfully, and thus they 
laid the foundations of their civil, social, domestic and political life, 
upon the word of God. They procured " a minister of good conver- 
sation, to preach to them and their children." 

I find. Sir, from an examination of the town records, that the prin- 
cipal expenses which the town incurred for a number of years, after 
its incorporation, were for the support of religion and its institutions. 
And I find that the great sacrifices of the people in this connec- 
tion were cheerfully borne ; for they felt that religion was the basis 
of all true prosperity, both for this and the future life. " God loveth 
a cheerful giver." They gave, they labored, and sacrificed freely and 
cheerfully, and the blessing of God was upon them and theirs. 

Mr. President, if people are disposed to complain of their contribu- 
tions to the cause of religion and good morals in these days, as being- 
onerous, they should be ashamed when they think of the severe and 
persevering sacrifices made by the first fathers and mothers of Marl- 
borough, and her worthy daughters. But if there were any sacrifices 
which they made, which paid compound interest, they Avere those 
which they made in building upon the only true Foundation-stone, 
which supports all the prospei'ity of the family, the town, the county, 
the state, and the nation. Mr. President, Ave are called to build upon 
foundations Avhich our puny hands have not laid. Men and Avomen of 
other days, of giant strength, of religious principle, and of unblenching 
fortitiide and perseverance — men and women imbued with uuAvaver- 
ing confidence in God, and of an ardent love for civil and religious 
liberty, laid the foundations of all the greatness and prosperity over 
which we this day rejoice. And the fabric Avhich they reared, may 
be likened to some gothic pile which the skill and caprice of later 
ages have been employed to adorn, but Avhich is indebted to them for 
none of its noble pillars, mighty arches, and massive strength. It 
still reposes upon its own deep foundations, and has lost as much, at 
least in simplicity and majesty, by our^ attempts to improve it, as it 



519 

has gained in taste and elegance. We inherit the lands Avhich the 
Fathers cleared. We send our children to the schools and colleges 
which they founded, live under the laws which they enacted, and enjoy 
the liberties Avhich they achieved. Make up this day an inventory of 
your paternal inheritance, and acknowledge with gratitude what God 
hath wrought for the people in two centuries. 

Mr. President, I find that the fathers and mothers of Southborough 
were not unmindful of the fundamental cause of education. From 
the record, I learu that the town was indicted in 1732, because they 
did not maintain a schoolmaster ; also, for not providing sealed 
weights and measures ; and further, because they did not possess a 
pair of stocks ! Noav, Mr. President. I think their delinquencies 
may have been to their credit ; for, in the first place, they all behaved 
so well, that they did not need a pair of stocks ; and in the second 
place, they Avere doubtless so honest in their dealings with one another, 
that they could dispense with sealed weights and measures ; and as 
to the lack of a schoolmaster, they Avere living in the strength of the 
abundant intellectual nourishment, draAvn from the paps of their good 
old mother, Marlborough. 

But, Mr. President, as soon as the strain upon their resources for 
the building of a meeting-house, and providing for the preaching of the 
gospel, and some other pressing necessities, relaxed, they promptly 
made provision for the education of the rising generation in all "good 
learning." Within the space of five years, the educational apparatus 
was in full blast, and Timothy Johnson was appointed their first 
teacher, and Samuel Bellows, the second — names that should have 
been inscribed on the town banner to-day, and ever pi'eserved as sacred 
in her annals. Next to the sanctuary and its ordinances, the fathers 
and mothers placed tlie school-house, and the cause it represented. 
Yea, they were inseparable, in their view. They paid constant atten- 
tion to the religious and intellectual education of their children. They 
instructed, warned, exhorted, reproved, and Avhen necessary applied 
the rod of correction, with singular fidelity ; parents governed then, 
and the children obeyed. In short, they made it the grand object of 
their lives, not so much to lay up riches for their oifspring, as to make 
them affluent in all those virtues which fitted them to become good and 
useful citizens, ornaments to society, blessings to themselves, their 
country, and the world. And I am happy to be able to state, that the 
sons and daughters of Southborough, of the present generation, are 
emulating, in some respects, the zeal of the first fathers and mothers of 
the town in this cause. Find me a parallel, in this glorious old Bay 
State, to what they have done within four years past. Five school- 
houses, elegant and commodious, with all modern appliances, have 
been erected, and a noble building for a high school, beautifully fitted up 



520 

tor its exalted mission, has been presented to the town by a muniticeut 
citizen. Add to this, that, within about the same time, some thirteen 
thousand dollars have been expended, by a few of her liberal citizens, 
for the erection of a beautiful sanctuary and its fixtures, and I think 
we may say, that there is hope that Southborough Avill yet take a 
proud position among the daughters of Marlborough, and send out 
her light and influence to bless and make glad our land. And, 
Mr. President, I have not forgotten to add, that we have a town 
library of rising two thousand volumes, bearing the name of its hon- 
ored founder, and which, if properly managed, may be a great bless- 
ing to the population of the town, and especially to the young. May 
the individual who founded it, live a thousand years ; and he Avili 
be remembered, when Southborough celebrates her three hundredth 
anniversary, yea, her thousandth. 

But, Mr. President, I wish to say another thing about the fathers 
and mothers of Southborough. They were the steady friends, the 
active promoters, and the fearless champions of civil liberty. Read 
the inscription upon our town banner. It conveys to us the instruc- 
tions voted in town meeting, to be given to their representative to the 
General Court, and by him presented to said Court : " That you would, 
in the most effectual and loyal manner, firmly assert and lawfully 
maintain the inherent rights of the province, that posterity may know, 
that if we must be slaves, we do not choose by our own acts to destroy 
ourselves, and willingly entail slavery on them." And, Mr. President, 
we compose in part that posterity, and we do know this day, and 
recognize with grateful hearts, that the fathers and mothers of South- 
borough nobly acted for us. The crisis came ! The tocsin sounded 
the alarm over the hills and valleys, and none more prompt to buckle 
on the harness ! See that band of fifty-six men, armed and equipped, 
and hastening — whither? — first to the house of God, to breathe out a 
solemn prayer to the Most High, for his blessing upon their efforts to 
defend their chartered privileges from arbitrary encroachments. Hav- 
inof recognized their dependence upon the Divine blessing, whither 
hasten they now, Avith hearts strengthened and fortified by the Divine 
benediction ? To Concord ! To do battle with their brethren in arms, 
against their tyrants, and to pursue the fleeing enemy to his lair, under 
the ominous shadow of Bunker Hill ! Tell me not, that they were not 
the ready and fearless champions of civil liberty. Tell me not, that 
they were not, every one of them, patriots and heroes, who deserve to 
be had in everlasting remembrance — who could peril life, and prop- 
erty, yea all, for liberty for themselves and us who here this day are 
reaping the full benefits of their perils, sufferings and sacrifices. The 
daughter dwelling in the South, was Avorthy of the dear old mother, 
dAvelling in the North ; and may she never disgrace her noble ancestry 



521 

by recreancy to God, to liberty, or humanity. Good laws and insti- 
tutions we have, but they will not reform us, if reformation begin not 
at home. Let us ever remember, that virtuously educated, and well 
disciplined families, lie at the foundation of all our future progress and 
true prosperity. A community is just what its component families 
make it, vigorous, self-governing and prosperous, or else sunk in im- 
becility, the creature of oppression, and enslaved by vice. The deep 
seat of the strength of any community, or nation, is to be found in its 
Christian homes ; not in the Saxon blood that may flow in its veins ; 
not in the busy commerce of her rivers or coasts ; not in her mineral 
treasures ; not in her fertile valleys, that wave their golden harvests. 
No, Mr. President, other nations have possessed all these advantages, 
but have failed for want of Christian homes. 

As we gaze upon the groups of happy children and youth who grace 
this festal day, may the spirit of our first fathers aud mothers be 
breathed into our hearts, and the holy purpose be formed there, that 
to perpetuate and enhance the blessings of civil and religious liberty, 
Ave will henceforth labor and work for the virtuous education of our 
children. They are our jewels and our hope. In the language of one 
of our most illustrious educators, who has just been followed to his 
honored grave, by thousands of appreciating countrymen, " God has 
written on man, in letters not to be mistaken, — This being is made to 
be educated. "Without an education, he is a savage. By its aid he may 
be exalted to a station but little lower than that of the angels." The 
virtuous education of our children, the support of moral and religious 
institutions, the framing of good laws, and the prompt and faithful 
execution of them, — to these fundamental points, may the minds and 
hearts of all our citizens be directed. Thus may the true glory and 
prosperity of the towns of this state, and nation, be advanced and 
perpetuated. 



4. Northboroitgh, our only Grandchild — Worthy, as such, to be regarded with 
especial favor by her venerable Grandmother. 

Responded to by George C. Davis, Esq., of Northborough, 
who spoke as follows : 

Mr. President : 

I thank you for this honor ; and in behalf of my native town, I 
thank you for the kind words in which you have been pleased to 
notice us. Sir, I regret that circumstances have prevented the attend- 
ance of a gentleman whom we expected to reply to any sentiment you 
might be pleased to offer to Npythborough — a gentleman to whom all 



522 

would have listened with pleasure. By the record, Ave are indeed the 
grandchild of Marlborough, and the child of Westborough ; but, Sir, 
I presume it is no new thing to you, that in modern philosophy the 
child may be the father of the parent. 

Sir, our Fathers have made the record that Northborough was set- 
tled anterior to the mother town, to whom she was a precinct until 
1766, when she received an act of incorporation imder the present 
name. Northborough was originally a part of the great Cow Common, 
which has been alluded to by the orator of the day. And the early 
records of our good old Marlborough grandfathers further say, that 
they "voted" that our territory "should remain a perpetual cow 
common for the use of this town, never to be altered without the con- 
sent of all the inhabitants and proprietors, at a full town meeting ; 
except foui'-score acres of upland the town hath reserved within the 
aforesaid tract of land, to accommodate some such desirable persons 
as need may require and the town may accept." 

Mr. President, the native delegation from our borough have cer- 
tainly cause for much self-gratulation, when we meet Avith you on this 
two hundredth anniversaiy of the incorporation of our beloved old 
homestead, to be able to come before you, and claim that by the family 
record, Ave are descended from " desirable persons." And, Sir, if this 
is true, may Ave not claim too — and Avithout subjecting ourselves to 
the charge of egotism — that Ave have given to our country brave and 
patriotic men ; to our State, an upright Judge, an " honest " Governor 
and distinguished United States Senator ; to Congress, able Repre- 
sentatives ; to Christianity, pious and devoted missionaries and minis- 
ters of the gospel; to sulfering humanity, skillful physicians. And 
from us have gone out distinguished lawyers, peace-loving magistrates, 
eminent merchants, successful manufacturers, thrifty and "desirable " 
farmers and mechanics. 

Mr. President, The inhabitants of our little borough, with some aid 
from this ancient town, were among the first to establish the great 
cotton and Avoolen manufacturing of Ncav England, single mills of 
Avhich have now outgroAvu the capacity of any Avater power within our 
borders. And, Sir, as early as 1768, my honored grandfather Avas 
sent for to come and establish leather manufacturing within our pre- 
cinct ; a single germ from this ancient establishment has covered your 
verdant hills Avith happy cottages and busy shops. 

In educational matters we have endeavored not to fall far behind 
the times. Our public schools have been in good standing. We have 
maintained a lyceum for thirty-tAvo consecutive years, before which a 
series of lectures of high order has been delivered, by many of the 
most eminent lecturers of the age. We have sent to the State Normal 
schools more than thirty pupils, who have gone out to all parts of the 



523 

land — many of whom are still successfully engaged as teachers — and 
iu all things, Mr. President, Northborough has endeavored to prove 
herself worthy of her honorable ancestry. 

Mr. President, allow me again to thank you for your very kind and 
flattering sentiment ; and in return, to propose : — 

Good old Grandmother Marlborough. — Although she has now passed 
her two hundredth year, yet by her culture, her thrift, and her indus- 
try, she shows no signs of dotage. 



5. The Early Clergy of Marlborough and the Marlborough Association. 

This sentiment called forth the following response from Rev. 
.losEPH Allen, D. D., of Northborough. 

Mr. President : 

I have not much to say, for very little is known of \hejirst minister 
of this ancient town. Rev. William Brimsmead, we are told, began 
to preach in Marlborough in 16G0, just two hundred years ago. He 
afterwards preached as a candidate in the still more ancient town of 
Plymouth, where he was invited to settle. He declined the offer, and 
returned to Marlborough, where he was ordained in 1666, and where 
he remained till his death, in 1701. 

He may have been, as we have no doubt he was, a good man and a 
faithful and devoted minister ; but, in failing to comply with the Apos- 
tolic injunction, that " a bishop should be the husband of one wife," 
we do not think he consulted his own welfare, or that of his people. 
As for himself, in the growing infirmities of age, he had neither ^vife 
nor children to care for him, and so his people very considerately, 
and much to their credit, voted, as the record says, " to procure a 
place to remove their minister to, and to provide him a nurse." His 
house stood on the west side of the beautiful eminence, from which 
we have just retired, on the very borders of the Indian plantation of 
Ockoocangansett, and near the site of the old meeting-house. Mr. 
Brimsmead was buried in the old cemetery in the east village, and an 
unlettered stone marks the spot where he was laid. 

Mr. President, I wish I could call up and place before you, and 
clothe with the habiliments of life, the faded images of the venerable 
men referred to in the sentiment to which I am called upon to respond, 
" the angels of the seven churches," who, in 1725, one hundred and 
thirty-five years ago, formed the first ecclesiastical association west of 
Cambridge — if I mistake not, the second ministerial association in 
67 



524 

the American Colonies. Of this goodly company, Robert Breck, of 
Marlborough, the immediate successor of William Brimsmead, was 
" facile priiiceps," the recognized head, to whom his brethren readily 
accorded the highest place. 

Mr. Breck was a native of Dorchester, a graduate of Harvard 
College of the class of 1700, and his ministry of twenty-six years was 
to his own flock and to the neighboring churches a perpetual benedic- 
tion. He came here in the freshness of youth, being only twenty-two 
years of age at the time of his ordination ; and his death, in the very 
midst of his usefulness and fame, in the forty-ninth year of his age, 
was regarded as a public calamity. Some of his descendants have 
risen to distinguished honor, and some of them are now present, and 
can, if called upon, speak for themselves. 

Mr. President, I should like to speak of the associates of Mr. 
Breck, the ministers of the neighboring towns, and to pay to each 
due honor. But I must content myself with the bare mention of 
their names. There was Prentice, of Lancaster, three of whose 
daughters married clergymen in Worcester County. There was 
Gardner, of Stow, the father of honored sons and daughters. There 
Avas Loring, of Sudbury ; and Swift, of Framingham ; and Parkman, 
of Westboro' ; and Cushing, of Shrewsbury ; names once familiar as 
household words in all this region, and preserved by their descendants 
of succeeding generations ; names honored in their day, and intimately 
associated with the intellectual and religious culture, the social char- 
acter, and, I may add, the material prosperity of the towns of which 
they were so long the spiritual teachers and guides. 

For it should be considered, that, at that period of our history, the 
clergy held a more commanding position than is now accorded to 
them, or than they choose to occupy. They formed, indeed, a sort of 
aristocracy ; their families interchanged social visits ; and intermar- 
riages between the sons and daughters of clergymen, were events of 
frequent occurrence. Many of them were men of superior talents, 
and all of them had received the best culture that the country 
afforded. 

Like the judiciary of this Commonwealth, the clergy held their 
office for life ; and the disruption of the ministerial tie was a rare 
occurrence, and was looked upon very much in the same light as the 
dissolution of the marriage bond. The minister was somewhat of an 
autocrat within his own domain ; and a ministerial association was 
an ecclesiastical court, before which matters pertaining to the church, 
and even questions of a secular nature, were brought for adjudica- 
tion. 

The seven whom I have named, with those who subsequently were 
associated with them, thirty-eight in all, have seen the last of earth. 



525 

and have, at the bidding of the Master, as we trust, "gone up 
higher." Half a century ago, and somewhat later, a few of the 
number, venerable men, the relics of a former generation, might 
have been seen in the College yard on Commencement day, standing 
in groups, or walking to and fro with a dignified air, seeking out old 
classmates and College acquaintances, and forming a very pleasing 
picture of the olden times. I remember them well ; their erect forms, 
their quaint costume, their silver or gold-headed canes, their polished 
silver or steel buckles, for the instep or the knee, their snow-white 
bush wigs, surmounted by the three-cornered, broad-brimmed, low- 
ci'owned hat, their long-Avaisted coats and vests, and shortened nether- 
garments, unsupported by the ingenious contrivances of modern art — 
all these are fresh in my remembrance as though they were things of 
yesterday. 

Of some eight or ten of the members of the old Marlborough 
Association, I retain a very distinct recollection. "With five of the 
number I occasionally interchanged ministerial labors, and several of 
them I regarded as personal friends. One of this number I had, till 
very recently, hoped to meet on this occasion ; an occasion which he 
had looked forward to with deep interest, and in the exercises of 
Avhich he was expected to take a part. But Heaven ordered it other- 
wise ; and it becomes us to bow with perfect submission to the divine 
decree. Peace to the memory of a good man, a respected citizen, a 
kind neighbor, a ftiithful friend, a sincere Christian, — Rev. Sylvester 
F. BuCKLiN, of Marlborough ; and peace to the memory of the early 
clergy of Marlborough and their worthy associates, the ministers of 
the neighboring churches, who have ceased from their mortal labors, 
and whose works do follow them. 



6. The Legislature of Massachusetts. — Ever mindful of our material interests, 
yet never forgetful of our personal rights and liberties. 

7. The Ancient Order of Free and Accepted Masons. 

This sentiment was appropriately responded to by Francis 
C. Whiston, Esq., of Framingham, who exhibited an apron 
worn by Lafayette at the laying of the Corner Stone of Bun- 
ker Hill Monument, on the 17th of June, 1825. 



8. The Founders of Marlborough, true to the old Saxon motto, — " Personal 
Liberty the antecedent, National Glory the consequent." 



526 
The Hon. Mr. Albee responded as follows : 

Sir, if it be deemed appropriate to call on me to respond to this 
sentiment, because I chanced to be chairman on the part of the Senate, 
of a legislative committee, and in that capacity reported the Personal 
Liberty Bill, and used, I am willing to admit, Avhat little influence I 
possessed to make it the law of Massachusetts ; let me say, that neither 
myself nor any other individual can claim much credit to himself for 
the principles embodied in that law. For, Sir, that law is but the 
summing up of the liberty-loving instincts of the stock from Avhich we 
sprung. 

The text you have given me, seems to imply that our immediate as 
well as distant ancestors labored to enlarge the circle of individual 
rights. Is this implication true ? I think it is. 

Other tribes, and families, and nations of the human race, have 
sought national greatness at the expense of individual liberty. The 
Greeks, for instance, beat back the invading hosts of Persia, and ren- 
dered the little territory of Attica and the Peloponnessus more famous 
than all the rest of the ancient world. But here, the state was every 
thing, the individual was nothing. On the very day in which Leon- 
idas, with his " bold three hundred," stood at the pass of Thermopylte, 
the Spartan father must give up his child, if healthy and well-formed, 
to the public nurses, to be brought up as an instrument merely to 
enhance the glory of the state ; and the Spartan mother must sacrifice 
her offspring, if weakly and sickly, to the wolves of the wild ; and the 
Spartan hero and sage must take their meals at public tables, some- 
what less daintily fm-nished, I trust, than these have been, to which 
Ave have just paid our respects, as the substantials consisted of barley 
bread and black broth, and the desert of black broth and barley bread. 

Again, the pyramids of Egypt are no more the monuments of na- 
tional greatness than of individual servitude. 

The Celtic Highlander, — and one nation is a type in some respects 
of the whole family of Celtic nations, — the Celtic Highlander, I say, 
would stand by his clan and fight for his chieftain, though that chief- 
tain had once and again set his heavy foot upon his individual neck. 

But not so with the Teutonic stock, and especially with the Anglo- 
Saxon branch of it, from which we take our origin. This race has 
ever been remarkably tenacious of individual rights, personal liberty, 
untrammeled thought, freedom of speech and freedom of the press, 
since there has been a press. And, by the Avay, the invention of the 
art of printing was made by individuals of this stock. 

National glory and national greatness have been sought so far only, 
^.s that glory and that greatness tended to work out more perfectly 
individual security and individual happiness. 



1 



527 

I beg you to notice, Sir, that by this race have been built up all 
those great safeguards of individual rights, such as religious toleration, 
trial by jury, habeas corpus, &c. &c. No nation of Celtic origin has 
ever originated one of these, and very few have yet even adopted 
them. 

A desire for religious freedom seems to have been a characteristic 
of all the nations of Teutonic origin. This desire culminated in the 
days of Luther, and effected the great Reformation. The Anglo-Saxon 
branch seems to have gone further, and aimed to secure directly civil 
liberty embodied in constitutions, and regulated by law. Time, Sir, 
obliges me to leap from peak to peak in history. I will therefore say, 
in short, that to effect this, to gain civil liberty, they throttled King 
John at Runnymede, beheaded King Charles I. in the street before the 
palace of White-Hall, and made King James II. an exile from the 
throne of his ancestors. 

There is, Sir, yet another sprout from this old Saxon stock. I refer 
to the Anglo-Saxon-American branch. Has this degenerated, or has 
it improved by transplanting ? Sir, it is difhcult to say what verdict 
history will record in respect to the present generation ; with regard 
to the past, the verdict is already given. ' Thou hast been weighed 
in the balance, and not found wanting.' 

Conceiving a more free and perfect form of government, and de- 
manding a higher degree of religious liberty than England had attained, 
our Fathers left the pleasant hills and valleys of their native land, and 
braved the dangers of a tempestuous ocean. As they neared these 
New England shores, the Pilgrims looked out, not upon neatly thatched 
cottages, flowering hedges and smiling valleys, such as they had left 
behind them ; but they saw a verdureless coast, hills white with the 
snows of winter. In fact, nought but a blank wilderness lay before 
them. Hold, not so. These men and these women had faith in prin- 
ciples. They had principles. They came here for a purpose. And 
those noble men, and those courageous women, as in that solitary boat 
they neared that solitary rock in Plymouth harbor, saw, as they gazed 
in imagination down the (to them) illuminated vistas of futurity, a 
brighter picture than unfolding time has yet revealed — a nation 
founded on truth, practicing justice, enjoying liberty. 

To the end that this vision might become history, our Fathers went 
to work systematically. Claiming as they did, in addition to the rights 
the Anglo-Saxon race had already secured, that every human being 
had a right to be educated, they founded free schools, " those little 
democracies " by whose instrumentality, aided by the territorial divis- 
ions of Parish, Town, County and State, their descendants were to be 
educated into a most perfect form of representative national govern- 
ment. 



528 

But, iu process of time, the mother country claimed the right to tax 
these Colonies without their consent. Their reply was worthy the 
stock from which they sprung. Not a mill of tax that is laid without 
our consent will we pay. Here is an invasion of the rights of property ; 
our individual liberty is jeopardized. 

Now, Sir, to show how general was this feeling of opposition to this 
unjust claim of England, it is only necessary to state the fact, that 
many of the towns, especially in New England, early took action 
against it — the Borough towns among the rest. The bold, defiant, and 
yet polished declaration of Southborough on this occasion, you have 
listened to, in the speech of the gentleman who has spoken for that 
town. Marlborough also, as early I think as 1764 or '65, voted to 
devote, if need be, themselves and their property to the sacred cause 
of American liberty. 

But England pressed her claim, and the result we all know. The 
Colonies di'ew up their great national manifesto. And in this is the 
crowning glory of the Saxon race. In this they laid higher claims for 
individual rights than Saxon or Anglo-Saxon had before conceived of; 
higher, in fact, than ever before had been shadowed forth, except in 
the Gospel of Christ. 

They asserted, not that Anglo-Saxon, not that Anglo-Saxon- 
American, but that " all men are endowed by their Creator with 
certain inalienable rights, among which are life, liberty and the pur- 
suit of happiness." And this declaration they triumphantly main- 
tained at the point of the bayonet, at Bennington, Saratoga, Trenton, 
Princeton, Valley Forge and Yorktown. 

Such, Sir, were our immediate Fathers, and men of like stamina 
were those who, 

'< Daring storm and foe, 
Sought this blest soil two hundred years ago." 



9. Our Pilgrim Fathers. — " They built institutions for men, not men for insti- 
tutions." 

Responded to by Rev. Peter Parker, D. D., formerly resi- 
dent for many years in China, who spoke as follows : 

Ladies and Gentlemen : 

It is quite providential that I am here to-day. On arriving at 
Framingham, yesterday, from the seat of Government, I learned, inci- 
dentally, there was to be a Bi-centennial Celebration in Marlborough 
to-day. I instinctively decided. Providence permitting, to be present. 
I wished to be placed under the influences of such an occasion ; one so 



529 

interesting and instructive, in its associations and memories. The 
realization of these influences has greatly exceeded my lively anticipa- 
tions. But in being unexpectedly called upon to respond to a senti- 
ment, I have not the advantage of pre-meditation, nor, like the learned 
Judge on my right, have I any " thread," to aid me, [Hon. Judge 
Mellen, who thus designated his brief.] 

The eloquent Orator of the occasion has beautifully represented you 
as " standing, to-day, as it were upon an Isthnuis of time, Avhich con- 
nects the vast Continent of the Past with the illimitable domain of the 
Future." Here, how many reflections rush upon the mind ! What 
recollections of the past, facts and circumstances of the present, and 
thoughts of the future, come up upon the occasion ! By the pro- 
gramme, the sentiment to Avhich I am to respond is, " Our Pilgrim 
Fathers. They built institutions for men, not men for institutions." 
Wliat a theme ! I Avould like to elaborate the subject, and dwell upon 
it half an hour ; but the lateness of the moment, and the limited time 
allotted us, preclude extended remarks, and I must content myself with 
throwing out a few thoughts which have particularly impressed my 
own mind. 

Our Pilgrim Fathers ! How the mention of them thrills every heart ! 
The thought has sometimes presented itself, if it were possible for us 
to choose the nation, of which of all others we would prefer to be 
descended, which would we select ? Would it be Russia, the Muscovite 
stock, or France, Portugal, Spain, Greece or Rome ? Xo. Neither 
of them. It would be the very one we claim, the good old Anglo- 
Saxon race; and in respect to our origin, it is our highest glory that 
the blood of the Pilgrim stock flows vigorously in our veins. Our 
Pilgi'im Fathers ! They built institutions for men? Aye, more. 
They built institutions for God and men, — institutions for which men 
have, and ever will, bless them ; and God on high has already, and, to 
eternity, will reward them. 

During these exercises I have contrasted the scene before and around 
me with the state of this town two hundred years ago. I have thought 
of the little band of the first settlers, described by the Orator, alluded 
to by the Poet, convened at the base of yonder hill, and who, while in 
the act of imploring protection from God, Avere surprised by their 
savage foe ; and could they have looked down the long vista of the 
coming two centuries, and beheld what we this day witness, and know 
what we know — how the prospect must have nerved their arm to resist 
the hostile Indian and other foes, and have stimulated their hearts to 
overcome all obstacles, and convert the then wilderness surrounding 
them, into the Eden we behold. From reflections on the past and 
present, the mind goes out and forward to the future, and conceives 
that, great and marvelous as are the changes of the last two centuries, 



530 

whoever shall stand where we now do, on the Third and Fourth Cen- 
tennial Anniversary of Marlborough, they will behold progressive 
revolutions far surpassing all yet Avitnessed. 

One of the most important sentiments ever uttered by the great 
Daniel Webster — name ever dear to us all — has particularly impressed 
me on this occasion. It was to this effect, — " Every man should re- 
member he is a link connecting the past with the future" It were 
well if every one present would take this sentiment home to his bosom, 
now and here. I behold venerable men around me that have acted in 
view of this principle ; some, by sending into the world families of chil- 
dren and grandchildren, with cultivated intellects and sanctified hearts, 
to bless the age in which they live ; others, by the productions of their 
pen, or by the principles they have cherished and maintained, have 
completed their link in the chain of continuity. But there are with us 
not only the grey-headed, the venerable remnant of the generation just 
passing away ; here are also the young women and young men of 
Marlborough, on whom it devolves to perpetuate the virtues of a noble 
and worthy ancestry, and to advance and preserve the great interests 
handed down to them as a sacred trust. To you let me especially 
commend the sentiment I have, in substance, quoted. Look you well 
to that link in time's great chain ; let it be of the best material and 
Avithout a flaw. 

It is worthy of special gratitude that you celebrate the Bi-centennial 
Anniversary of this town as a component part of a distinguished Com- 
monwealth, and of the glorious and happy Union of all the States. I 
Avill only add the devout wish, in which all will cordially unite, that 
the Third and Fourth Centennial Celebration of the Incorporation of 
the beautiful and pre-eminent town of Marlborough, may occur under 
the same blessed- Union — which Union may God — the God of our 
Pilgrim Fathers, and our God — grant to be perpetual. 



10. The Orator of the Day. — Marlborough may well be proud of such sons. 

Response of Mr. Hudson. 

Mr. President: 

After the indulgence granted me this morning in yonder Pavilion, 
it would be ingratitude in me to consume the time which has justly 
been appropriated to invited guests. I will simply say that the scenes 
I have witnessed this day, revive the recollection of past events, and 
early friendships, which render my native town peculiarly endearing 
to me. "When I behold the familiar faces around me, I feel as though 
I had returned to the old homestead, to spend a joyful Thanksgiving 



5:31 

under the parental roof. As Marlborough, in all periods of her 
history, has been a fruitful vine, I will give you this sentiment : 

Marlborough — The Mother of J^migrants and of Townships. 



11. The present Clergy of Marlborough. — Though their ranks are now sadly 
thinned, yet a remnant is left that will never be found wanting to the cause 
of sound learning, of vital piety, of unshackled freedom, and practical right- 
eousness. 

Briefly responded to by Rev. L. E. Wakefield. 

12. The 'Memory of the Recent Dead. — Goodale, Field, and Bucklin. 

"We sjTnpathize with those who weep, 

Whom stern afflictions bend, 
Despairing o'er the lowly sleep 

Of kindred or of friend ; 
But they, who Jordan's swelling breast 

No more are called to stem, 
Who in the eternal haven rest — 

We mourn no more for them." 

Dirge by the Band. 

13. Our Spiritual Guides of Other Days, — We gladly welcome them from their 
distant fields of labor, to our Festival of Commemoration. 

In response to this sentiment, Rev. George E. Day, D. D., 
formerly pastor of the East church in Marlborough, now Pro- 
fessor in Lane Seminary, Cincinnati, Ohio, spoke as follows : 

Mr. President : 

The time is fast waning, and therefore instead of saying all that I 
would, I avail myself of the opportunity of paying a humble tribute 
to the memory of my honored predecessor in the ministry in this 
place, the Rev. S. F. Bucklix. He had taken an active part in the 
preparatory arrangements for this Celebration, and had hoped to be 
present with us to-day ; but He " whose Avays are not as our ways" 
had ordered otherwise. Rather more than two weeks since, he was 
borne to the tomb, amid the tears of three generations who loved him, 
and is now, we doubt not, in a brighter and more blessed assembly 
above. 

68 



532 

It may seem almost gratuitous to speak of the worth of one wlio 
has lived more than half a century in the midst of you, and Avith 
whose character none were unacquainted. But the peculiar relation 
which 1 sustained to him, for several years, will justify me in speak- 
ing of certain traits of his character which I had special opportunities 
for observing. As there are some countenances of which it is difficult 
to get a striking portrait, because no one feature is specially marked, 
so it is in respect to the characters of some men. Mr. Bucklin never 
aimed at eminence in the world of letters, and his gifts were of a 
solid and substantial rather than a brilliant kind. He was also by 
nature cautious in the formation of his opinions, and gentle in express- 
ing them; but along Avith all this, he possessed some traits to an 
uncommon degree, the remembrance of which will be certain to grow 
in the minds of all who kncAV him. 

He possessed genuine benevolence of character. The law of kind- 
ness was ever on his lips. He spoke kindly of all men. During all 
the years of my acquaintance Avith him, I cannot recollect to have 
heard him speak an unfriendly word of a single human being. He 
Avas ever ready to render little acts of kindness, even at considerable 
inconvenience to himself. His conscientious fidelity in the perform- 
ance of little duties, in his relations Avith others, was also a marked 
trait in his character, and contributed not a little to the general confi- 
dence with Avhicli he was regarded. 

It is often said that dismissed ministers make poor parishioners. It 
is certainly a trial of no ordiuaiy kind, for one Avho has long occupied 
the central position of influence in a church and congregation to stand 
aside, and see the special tokens of regard and affection once his, 
transferred to another. But this trial Mr. Bucklin was enabled by 
streno-th from above to convert into a triumph. He early determined 
to become a model of a dismissed minister. And he did. His suc- 
cessoi'S in the pastoi'al office all regarded him as a father. One and 
all, they would testify, if they could be here to-day, that they never 
found him suspicious, querulous or exacting, but uniformly disin- 
terested, high-minded and fraternal. As years passed on, the people 
to whom he once ministered learned to appreciate more and more the 
nobleness of his position. The universal reverence and affection 
which attended his declining years Avere but the fitting tribute to the 
success Avhich had crowned his high resolve to be a true friend to the 
parish, in his kindness to the ministers of their choice. 

He also took a lively interest in all that affected the welfare of the 
community. The promotion of education, temperance and public 
morality, ever found in him a warm and steadfast friend. He Avas a 
good citizen, a good neighbor, a good man. His life and memory 



533 

are now a pai't of the history of this town, and may the legacy of his 
example be long accounted among its treasures. 



14. T]ie First Settlers of New England. — It fell to their lot to establish Civil- 
ization and Christianity in a savage land. They laid the foundation of our 
prosperity ; let them be gratefully remembered by their children. 

William Brigham, Esq., being called upon, responded to 
this sentiment. 

Mr. Brigham, of Boston, remarked, that though he had not the 
honor of being a native of Marlborough, yet his ancestor was born and 
lived here, until mature manhood, and grew up to manhood in that 
perilous period of the histoiy of the town known as Queen Anne's 
war. He lived here till the close of George's war, Avhen he, and some 
fifteen of his friends, as though they had not had enough of frontier 
life, left the homes which they had so nobly defended, and made a new 
settlement at Grafton, he selecting for his home the beautiful hill in 
the Avesterly part of the toA\Ti, which still bears his name, and from 
the summit of which the spire of the church of his native town is dis- 
tinctly visible. 

Though not a native, yet he felt at home. lie was among his 
friends and cousins, and perhaps one-third of the audience before him, 
had descended from a common ancestor with himself. Among these 
cousins, he included the Fays, and there was some doubt whether we 
should have had any Fays here to-day, had it not been for the Brig- 
hams. Mary Brigham, the daughter of John, Avell known in history 
as the heroic defender of her own fireside against the assaults of hostile 
Indians, became the wife of Gershom Fay, and the mother of numer- 
ous descendants of that name. 

He was glad to meet his friends at this Celebration, for he loved to 
refer to the early history of the Commonwealth, and the heroic men 
who so nobly performed their mission in subduing the wilderness, and 
planting the institutions of learning and religion upon the soil of the 
New World. They were earnest men, and they pressed forward, not 
with doubt and fear, but with the determination of making the place 
which they had selected, their permanent home. When a new set- 
tlement was made, it was never abandoned. They mjght press on 
to still newer lands, and wilder scenes, but they never abandoned the 
hold which they had once made. The history of every town in New 
England, justifies this position. They were a people who were never 



534 

troubled with doubts. They uever neglected to build a meeting-house, 
or a school-house, or to construct roads, or to plant orchards, because 
it was doubtful whether they would be able to maintain the settlement 
which they had begun. A settlement once made, was forever there- 
after dedicated to freedom and to free institutions ; and the meeting- 
house was built at once, and the " gospel minister " settled. Roads 
were constructed, and orchards planted, and every means adopted to 
make the settlement permanent. Not one of the Pilgrims returned in 
the Mayflower, though one half of them had died before she sailed ; 
and a like determination to remain, and make this " remote corner of 
the earth " their fixed abode, is seen in every page of the histoiy of 
the early settlers of New England. 

Our Fathers have often been ridiculed for their love of land, and 
their desire to have plenty of room. And to us, it appears rather sin- 
gular that they should have been willing to extend their settlements so 
far into the wilderness, and to expose themselves to the dangers and 
horrors of frontier life. Cambridge and Watertown were settled im- 
mediately after Boston. In 1638, they went so far into the wilderness 
as Sudbury, and even here they soon found themselves straitened 
for land, and in 1656, obtained periuission to settle in Marlborough. 
This love of expansion may be attributed in part to the character of 
these pioneers, and in part to the fact that they found in all parts of 
the State certain portions of land, in limited quantities, that was free 
from forests, and produced abundance of grass for cattle. It is a well 
known fact, that at that time, by reason of the constant annual burning 
practiced by the Indians, most of the meadoAvs produced large crops 
of grass, and some of the uplands had been used for the planting 
of corn, and was as open to the plow as a western prairie, and when 
our Fathers spoke of being straitened for land, tliey meant nothing 
more than that they were straitened for land of that character which 
would afford sufHcient hay and pasturage for their cattle. The mead- 
ows of Sudbury and Marlborough were the source of attraction to them. 

At the time of the attack on Marlborough, by Philip, the population 
numbered about fifty persons in all, men, women and children, of 
whom perhaps thirty were fighting men. The war of Philip was one 
of a remarkable character. His movements were rapid, and the first 
notice of the attack of the enemy, was the attack itself. The assaults 
on Lancaster, Groton, Marlborough, Sudbury, Medfield, Weymouth, 
and Rehoboth, were all made Avithin a period of about two mouths. 
That assaults so sudden, so destructive and cruel, should have pro- 
duced consternation throughout the Colony, is now no cause of wonder. 
Nor should we be surprised, if all the acts of the Government, in 
resisting such assaults and in providing against them, Avere not the 
resujt of wisdom and deliberation. The Avar Avas a severe blow to 



this eai-ly settlement. The beautiful orchards which they had planted 
were destroyed, and the humble dwellings wjiich they had erected 
were committed to the flames ; yet notwithstanding all this, not a set- 
tler abandoned his home, but as soon as the storm was over, returned 
to it and made it his permanent abode. 

But their troubles with the Indians did not end with Philip's war. 
During the subsequent wars, commonly known as William's war, 
Queen Anne's Avar, and George's war, this settlement suffered severely. 
In 1711, there were no less than twenty-six garrisoned houses, Avhere 
the inhabitants gathered at night, and slept on their arms. During 
almost the whole period from 1675 to 1725, the settlers here were 
compelled to have their arms constantly in their hands, to carry them 
to the house of God, and to be ready at all times to meet their savage 
enemy. And yet Ave hear men talk of chivalry, and courage, as 
though the people of New England possessed neither. Of the folly of 
such persons, the whole history of Ncav England bears evidence ; for 
there never was a people who met more manfully, and resisted more 
bravely, the obstacles in every path. The recoi-d of their courage and 
patriotism can be read, as avcU in the histories of Marlborough, Sud- 
bury and Lancaster, as in those of Concord, Lexington and Charles- 
toAvn ; and while we honor the heroes of the Revolution, let us not 
forget, that the fathers of those heroes Avere trained in the severe 
school of the Seven Years' AVar ; and that they, too, Avere the sons of 
men Avho had passed through an ordeal as severe as that of fire. 
Pi-ior to 1775, the people of NeAv England had passed thi-ough five 
wars, extending over a period of nearly fifty years, of far greater 
severity, and attended Avith more sufi'ering and privation, than that 
which finally gained them their independence. In all of these it is 
sufficient to say, that the inhabitants occupying the old eight miles 
square, acted their part manfully and patriotically. 

Mr. Brigham concluded his renuirks by the foUoAviug sentiment : 

The Future Generations who shall occupy the Territory of Old Marl- 
borough — May they emulate the courage, patriotism and virtues of the 
six generations, Avhich have at all periods of her history defended her 
soil, and Avhich noAV sleep so gently beneath the green sods of her 
beautiful hills and valleys. 



Rev. Charles H. Brigham, of Taimton, a descendant of 
the Marlborough Brighams, being called upon, made a very 



536 

humorous speech, in which he amusingly commemorated the 
Brighams and Fays of other days, but of which we are unable 
to give any report. 

14. The Memory of Hon. John Davis, — The only Governor of the State, and 
United States Senator, the Borough towns ever produced. 

This sentiment called forth the following response from 
A. McF. Davis, Esq., of Worcester. 

M?: President: 

No more grateful task could be assigned to a son, than to respond, 
on such an occasion as this, to a sentiment like the one just proposed. 

Many of ray earliest recollections are twined around the old liome- 
stead of Deacon Isaac Davis, in Northborough, where my father was 
born, and to which, in after-life, he was accustomed to pay frequent 
visits. The activity of a useful life — the greater part of which was 
spent in the service of the public — and the excitement of participating 
in the great events and stirring scenes of our country's history, during 
that period, never effaced, nor even dimmed his fondness for that 
spot ; and Tomblin Hill, Hop Brook, and the Plain, were always 
welcome sights to his eye. 

Although his visits to this portion of Northborough, wliich contained 
the home of his childhood, were more frequent than those to the vil- 
lage, yet he would often, in the course of his drive, take a look at the 
centre of the town ; and stopping at the old burial-ground, near the 
Unitarian Church, linger for awhile, examining the condition of the 
family monuments erected there. Sometimes, too, leaving behind 
him the village of Northborough, so cosily nestled in the valley of the 
Assabet, he would climb the hills of Marlborough, to search the 
records traced in stone, which tell where the remains of three gen- 
erations of his ancestors lie deposited in the old cemeteries of this 
village. 

Among the names of those ancestors, perhaps none is more familiar 
in the history of Marlborough than that of Robert Breck, the second 
minister of this place. The prominence of his name in the annals of 
this town, and the frequent allusions to it to-day, render any further 
reference to him, on my part, a work of supererogation. 

His daughter Sarah, my great-great-graudmother, was married to 
Dr. Benjamin Gott, a physician, concerning Avhom we learn, from an 
obituary notice published in the Boston News-Letter of August 1, 1751, 
that he was a man of great learning, who was " peculiarly faithful to 
his patients, moderate in his charges, and charitable to the poor." 
Certainly he must have been a popular doctor. 



537 

Rev. Dr. Allen has related to you to-day au anecdote, handed down 
in our family, of Robert Break's habit of reading from a Hebrew 
Bible every morning, and translating as he read. Of Dr. Gott, it 
is said, that he kept alive his knoAvledge of Latin, as did the 
Rev. Robert Breck his of Hebrew, by reading from a Latin Bible 
every morning, and rendering into English as he read. 

How many of the descendants of these learned men — who, in the 
backwoods of the Massachusetts Colony, thus diligently cultivated 
their knowledge of the dead languages — could perform the same feat 
to-day ? 

Of Dr. Samuel Brigham, the husband of Anna, daughter of Dr. 
Gott, I shall leave the descendants of that name, of whom so many 
are present to-day, to tell you more. His daughter Anna was the Avife 
of Dea. Isaac Davis, my grandfather, who had come to Northborough 
to teach the inhabitants of tliat Borough how to make leather. Mar- 
ried to her, and settled down on the old "Tomblin farm," he remained 
in the home of his adoption to the time of his death. With his trade 
of tanning, he combined that of farming. He attained a prominent 
position among his fellow citizens, and represented them for years in 
the General Court. In common with many others at that time, he 
entertained a decided hostility towards lawyers ; and in 1785, he 
was selected as an appropriate representative of the sentiments of the 
town of Northborough, to act at a County Convention, to be holden at 
Leicester. His instructions were, amongst other things, to vote for a 
petition to the General Court, for the annihilation of lawyers. Very 
fortunately, this hostility did not prevent my father from following the 
profession of his choice. 

Although I cannot claim either of the Boroughs as my birth-place, 
still family associations chaster so closely around the hills of Marl- 
borough and the valley of Northborough, that tliey vindicate my claim 
as a descendant of the Boroughs, to be with you to-day, and to share 
with you in the pleasures of this Festival. 



The following volunteer sentiment, handed in by Colonel 
Dexter Fay, a prominent and venerable citizen of South- 
borough, was read by Dexter Newton, Esq. : 

Marlborough, a Wonderful Mother, — With Children more than a hundred years 
old, and a Grandchild fourscore-years-and-ten, sitting on the maternal lap, and 
not yet weaned. 



538 
Volunteer sentiment, by Edward Wilkins, Esq. : 

Our Fathers and Mothers of 1660. — Could they see and know what we do 
to-day, they would be filled with admiration, like that of the Queen of Sheba, 
when she beheld the splendor of Solomon. 



Among the other sentiments read on the occasion, were the 
following : 

The Venerable Men vho are with us to-day. — With age, the common excite- 
ments and warm blood of youth pass away ; but the heart of the wise man, the 
older it grows the warmer it feels. 

The Sons and Daughters of Temperance. — In the practice of their prmciples, 
may the Daughters be as pure as the crystal fount, and the Sons as constant as 
the Waters of Niagara. 

Our Firemen ; the Minute Men of Modern Times. — Like the Minute Men of old, 
they subdue their enemy by the use of their arms ; but, like them too, they 
often find one fire which conquers them — the fire of a lady's eye. 

The intervals between the sentiments and responses were 
filled up by the excellent Bands present, which vied with each 
other in discoursing exquisite music. 

Other sentiments had been prepared, and other eloquent 
voices would no doubt have given worthy utterance to the 
affecting memories, the thoughts and emotions which seemed 
to gush up spontaneously from full and overflowing hearts ; 
but the descending sun gave warning that the time of parting 
had come, and the great assembly quietly dispersed, each to his 
own home, and the sphere of his accustomed duties ; but all 
apparently well pleased to have spent one day in commemo- 
rating the virtues of their Forefathers, and reviving the friend- 
ships of earlier years. 

In the evening an Instrumental Concert was given in the 
Dinner Pavilion, by Hall's (Boston) Band, Gilmore's (Boston) 
Band, and the Marlborough Cornet Band. It was attended by 
a large audience, by whom the music was highly enjoyed. 
Fireworks, from the residence of Mr. Samuel Boyd, and other 
parts of the town, closed the festivities. 

Thus ended a day which will be ever memorable in the 
annals of Marlborough ; a day which had been long looked 
forward to with eager interest and pleasing anticipations. 
These anticipations were fully realized. The weather was all 



539 

that could be desired, and the hills and valleys were clad in 
verdure and beauty. The arrangements for the occasion were 
successful. Each performed well the duties assigned them. 
The Commemorative Exercises fully met the expectations of 
those who came to enjoy them. All felt that this reunion of 
the Sons and Daughters of old Marlborough, according to the 
hope expressed by the Committee of Arrangements in their 
card of invitation, had been "a glorious and happy one, full of 
deep interest and rich enjoyment Avhile it was passing, and 
worthy of perpetual remembrance." On rising from the table, 
the President of the day announced that the meeting was ad- 
journed for an Hundred Years. Let us indulge the hope, that 
those who may be here to engage in a similar celebration a 
century hence, may look back upon glorious and precious 
memories, and contemplate a Future without a cloud. 

69 



MO 



LETTERS. 



Of the T^etters which were received in response to 
their note of invitation, the Committee find room only 
for the following : 

J'''rom Hon. Charles F. Adams. 

Washington, May 27, 1860. 

My Dear Sir,— It would give me great pleasure to be present at 
the Celebration of the day so interesting to your town, if I could hope 
to be released from my duty here. But as there is no prospect of 
this, I beg, through you, to express to the Committee my most earnest 
good wishes for the continued prosperity of the community which 
they represent. 

Very truly your friend, 

C. F. Adams. 

To Rev. Horatio Alger, Marlborough, Mass. 



From Hon. Charles JR. Train. 

Washington City, D. C, June 4, 1860. 

Gentlemen, — I had hoped that an earlier adjournment of Congress 
would have enabled me to participate in the festivities attending the 
Bi-centennial Celebration of the Incorporation of your Town. 

The best institution we received from our Fathers, is the New 
England town. It is the pure democracy, where the people educate 
and govern themselves. The great evil of our time is excessive legis- 
lation ; and the danger is, that, in a transfer of power from the people 
to their representatives, the source of legislative power will be disre- 
garded. In our own State, the virtue and intelligence of the whole 



541 

may be able to control the legislation of the few. Prosperity is sure 
to follow the eiforts of an intelligent and virtuous people, left to their 
own control. As I cannot be with you, allow me to send as a senti- 
ment, the following from the great Essayist, Macaulay. 

♦' Our Rulers — They will best promote the improvement of the nation, by 
strictly confining themselves to their own legitimate duties ; by leaving capital 
to find its most lucrative course; commodities, their fair price; industry and 
intelligence, their natural reward ; idleness and folly, their natural punishment ; 
by maintaining peace, by defending property, by diminishing the price of law, 
by observing strict economy in every department of the state. Let the Govem- 
ment do this ; the People will assuredly do the rest." 

Please accept my thanks for your kind invitation, and believe me, 
Gentlemen, 

Very respectfully and truly yours, 

Charles R. Train. 
To Messrs. Horatio Alger, 

HOLLIS LORINO, 

O. W. Albee, 

Committee. 



From Hon. John G. Palfrey. 

Cambridge, June .5, 1860. 

Gentlemen. — I am greatly honored and gratified by your obliging 
invitation, which I received in due course, to be present, on the 13th 
instant, at your Bi-centennial Celebration of the Incorporation of the 
Town of Marlborough. It would afford me peculiar pleasure to unite 
with you in that Commemoration. Such occasions are exceedingly 
attractive to those who have reflected on the causes of the greatness 
of Massachusetts, and there are special ties, of a personal character, 
and of great interest to me, which connect me with your town. It is, 
therefore, with extreme regret that I find it will not be in my power 
to avail myself of your kind attention. 

Begging you to accept my best thanks for it, I have the honor to 
be, gentlemen, with high personal regard, 

Your obedient servant, 

John G. Palfrey. 
To Messrs. Horatio Alger, 

HOLLIS LoRINO, 

0. W. Albee, 

Committee. 



' 542 

From John Langdon Sibley, Esq. 

Cambridge, June 8, 1860. 
Gentlemen, — I regret that I shall not be able to accept the invita- 
tion with which you have honored me to join in the Bi-centennial 
Celebration on the 13th instant. There are so many incidents con- 
nected with the history of Marlborough, and prominent men Avho were 
born or have lived there, that the occasion cannot fail to be instructive 
and interesting. I have long wanted to see a history of the Tomti, for 
it is deserving of one. It is gratifying to know, that the laboring oar 
is in the hands of one whose early associations, tastes and abilities, 
are admirably suited to the work ; and it is hoped that the results, 
minutely elaborated, will be embodied in a large historical volume, in 
order that those who cannot join you in the intellectual entertainment 
on Wednesday, may be enabled to enjoy something of it aftei'wards 
at their fire-sides. 

I have the honor to be, very respectfully, yours, 

John Langdon Sibley. 

To Messrs. Hoeatio Alger, 

HOLLIS LORING, 

O. "W. Albee, 

Coni7nittee. 



From Hon. E. R. Hoar. 

Concord, June 9, 1860. 
Gentlemen, — I have the honor to acknowledge the reception of 
your invitation to be present at the Bi-centennial Celebration of the 
Incorporation of the Town of Marlborough ; and regret that my offi- 
cial duties in Boston, will deprive me of the pleasure of accepting it. 
A visit to your beautiful town, at this season, would be very agree- 
able ; and my personal relations of friendship and respect for so many 
of its citizens, would make a participation in the pleasures and mem- 
ories of so interesting an occasion, especially attractive. But it will 
not be in my power ; and I can only express my hope, that you may 
have a great gathering and a good time. 

Very respectfully, 

E. R. Hoar. 
To Messrs. Horatio Alger, 

HOLLIS LoRING, 

0. W. Albee, 

Committee. 



548 

From Hon. Levi Lincoln. 

Worcester, June 11, 1860. 

Gentlemen, — I am very gratefully sensible to the proof of kind 
remembrance and attention, with which you are pleased to honor me, 
in the invitation to the Bi-centennial Celebration of the Incorporation 
of the Town of Marlborough, on the loth instant. 

Commemorations of such periods in local history, are of the liighest 
propriety. They are, indeed, sacred to association, memory, and the 
affections, and are as instructive as they are interesting. The names 
of many of your most worthy citizens, of a generation now nearly 
passed away, are still fresh in my recollection and respectful regard. 
Williams, Gates, Bruce, Brigham, Stevens, Packard, Draper, with 
others of their day and mine, were of my personal acquaintance ; and 
I can warmly sympathize with their descendants, and the present 
inhabitants of Marlborough, in recalling to remembrance the history 
of their manly virtues and honored character, and in congratulations 
upon the long-continued prosperity of this ancient town. It is with 
much regret, that I am constrained to deny myself the gratification of 
participating in the festivities of the occasion, while I seek to tender 
to you my hearty best wishes for the truest and highest enjoyment of 
them, by those who may have the happiness to attend. 

With very respectful consideration. 

Your obliged and obedient servant, 

Levi Lincoln. 
To Messrs. Horatio Alger, 
HOLLIS Loring, 
O. W. Albee, 

Committee. 



From Hon. Emory Washburn. 

Cambridge, June 11, 1860. 

Gentlemen, — While acknowledging the honor of your invitation to 
be present at the Bi-centennial Celebration of the Incorporation of the 
Town of Marlborough, I regret to add, that my official duties here will 
not admit of my availing myself of your kindness. 

To the natives of the town, and their descendants, for whom the 
Celebration is intended, the absence of one who can claim no such 
affinity, can be no cause of regret ; for to them and their memories and 
associations, it is properly and peculiarly dedicated. And yet, even 
for a stranger, the occasion cannot fail of being one of deep interest. 
If he was not born there, he was born, if in New England, in some 



544 

town, and could not fail to feel a chord of sympathy toxiched, as he 
witnessed the gathering of the people of Marlborough around the old 
ancestral hearth-stone. He could not then fail to appreciate some- 
thing of the value of the Institution of Towns, to which New England 
owes much of her character and prosperity ; and without which, she 
never could have been the New England of history, of which her 
sons are so justly proud. 

It is a matter of public congratulation, to witness the spirit of har- 
mony and local pride and interest with which these re-unions of the 
sons and daughters of these ancient towns are conducted. That of 
Marlborough, I doubt not, Avill fully sustain the anticipations in which 
it originated. There is no occasion for me to refer to the topics which 
will suggest themselves to those who gather there on the 13th, as you 
will be sure that the able and eloquent gentleman who is to address 
you, will do ample justice to the rich store of historic incidents and 
reflections which cluster around the life of that town, during the period 
of two hundred years ; and such yeai's, too, as have made the history 
of the world more memorable than any other period of equal length, 
since the woi-ld began. 

Again regretting that I am to lose these as a listener, as well as the 
exhibition of so much that must be deeply interesting to all, 

I am, very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

Emory Washburx. 
To Messrs. Horatio Alger, 

HOLLIS LORING, 

O, W. Albee, 

Committee. 



The Committee also received responses to their note 
of invitation from the following gentlemen who were 
unable to be present at the Celebration. 

Hon. Henry "Wilson, United States Senate ; Hon. Josiah Quincy, 
Jr., Boston ; R. W. Emerson, Esq., Concord ; F. B. Sanborn, Esq., 
Concord ; Frederick A. Packard, Esq., Philadelphia, Pa. 



NOTE 



Since the foregoing History has passed the press, the following 
errors have been discovered. 

Page 45, line 3, for ' involved,' read ' invoked.' 

Page 199, line 1, for ' 1798,' read ' 1778.' 

Page 219, line 3, from the bottom, for 'is,' read 'are.' 

We have also been enabled to make the follo'W'ing additions. To 
the list of Selectmen, on page 279, add 

Thomas Howe, Joseph Newton, Nathaniel Joslin, James Woods, 1701. 

To the list of Senators, on page 284, add 
Eli Rice, 1846. 

To the list of Deacons, on page 285, add 
John Barnes, 166-. 

To the list of Justices of the Peace, on page 28G, add 
Abraham Williams, John Weeks. 

On pages 272 to 277, we have given the names of the patriotic 
young men who enlisted into the service of the United States, in June 
or July, 18G1. Since that time several others have eidisted into dif- 
ferent corps, and common justice requires that their names should be 
added to the list of those who are willing to sacrifice all in defense of 
the Union and its blessed institutions. The following is a roll of the 
men, all of whom have enlisted for three years, or during the war. 

David Barnes. Michael Larvin. 

George T. Brigham. Henry Lawrence. 

Cyrus H. Brown. Henry Lee. 

George E. Burgess. Stephen Pope, Jr. 

William B. Campbell. Albert Prouty. 

Thomas Gallagher. Grenville H. Smith. 

Francis G. Graves. Neverson Stone. 

Alanson Howe. Barnabas Wall. 

Alonzo Howe. Cornelius Wall. 

Stephen Knight. Henry F. Wood. 



687 



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